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 AIBREW HOFEE 
 
 From, an Original Drawing . 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 LIFE 
 
 OF 
 
 ANDREW HOFER; 
 
 ■MM* 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF THE TRANSACTIONS IN THE TYROL 
 DURING THE YEAR 1809. 
 
 TAKEN FROM THE GERMAN. 
 
 By CHARLES HENRY HALL, Esq. 
 
 LONDON : 
 JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 
 
 1820. 
 
.H7 
 
 7L 
 
 London : Printed bv C. Rowoi th, 
 Bell-yard Teiiiplc-bar. 
 

PREFACE 
 
 " The History of Hofer" was first printed 
 * at Leipsig in the year 1817. It is an ano- 
 nymous publication, but it has been con- 
 jectured, and not without reason, that it is 
 the production either of Baron Hormayr, 
 one of the most active leaders of the Ty- 
 rolese patriots, or of some person in his 
 confidence, whom he supplied with mate- 
 rials for the work. It is evidently the 
 production of a man, who, if not an actor 
 himself in the scenes which he describes, 
 was at least intimately connected with those 
 who were. There can be no question about 
 the authenticity of his facts, they are 
 
 a 2 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 supported throughout by the authority of 
 original documents, and the minuteness of 
 his details impresses upon them the charac- 
 ter of truth, although they may be devoid 
 of interest to the reader, when they relate 
 to individuals of humble origin and station 
 and unknown beyond the limits of their 
 native mountains. 
 
 It may perhaps appear extraordinary to 
 the reader, that in a book which professes 
 to be the History of Hofer, Hofer should 
 play so subordinate a part. Whatever 
 blame may be attached to this contradic- 
 tion between the title and the subject of 
 these few pages, must in justice be thrown 
 on the original, as I could give no more 
 than what my materials gave me, though I 
 certainly was not without suspicion that in 
 more than one instance, the fame of Hofer 
 had been sacrificed by the writer, to that of 
 his more fortunate rival Hormayr. We have 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 seen, however, in some famous poems and 
 popular novels, that the hero scarcely shows 
 his face till the last page, where he is 
 either killed or married ; and here we have 
 a history of real facts, in which the ap- 
 pointed hero does little more than his ima- 
 ginary brethren. I fear that the character of 
 Hofer would have stood higher in our eyes, 
 if this translation of his memoirs had never 
 appeared ; but as the discovery of truth is 
 of much more importance than the excite- 
 ment of fictitious interest, perhaps I may 
 not be totally undeserving of thanks for 
 having attempted to make the true cha- 
 racter of the Tyrolese Chief familiar to the 
 English public. 
 
 In point of composition the original is 
 materially defective, it wants that which 
 is the first and greatest merit in all com- 
 positions — lucid arrangement. The order 
 of time is not observed, and the atten- 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 tion is distracted by a variety of collateral 
 and adventitious circumstances which im- 
 pede the progress of the main story. I 
 have therefore thought myself at liberty to 
 deviate in several instances from the course 
 of the original, for the sake of maintaining 
 the consistency and uniformity of the nar- 
 rative. 
 
 Some apology I also think it necessary 
 to make for the paraphrastic character of 
 the translation. The truth is, the style of 
 the German author is so perplexed and 
 intricate, so loaded with metaphor and po- 
 etical imagery, and in many places so very 
 harsh and obscure, that a literal English 
 translation would be perfectly unintelligible, 
 I am however persuaded, that if I have 
 been compelled to desert my author in his 
 language, I have faithfully adhered to him 
 in his sense and meaning ; and that, without 
 having made any essential alteration in his 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 character, I have endeavoured to present 
 him to the public in a more pleasing dress, 
 and a form more likely to engage attention. 
 It may perhaps be said that the time for 
 such a publication is gone by, and that the 
 achievements of Hofer and his companions 
 are forgotten, — but this is not so. It will be 
 long indeed before the events of the revo- 
 lutionary war, in which every power in 
 Europe was more or less engaged, have 
 ceased to excite a lively interest in our 
 minds; although the storm is passed, we 
 still listen with anxious solicitude to a reci- 
 tal of its ravages ; and at all events it is 
 impossible to contemplate the period, how- 
 ever remote, when the struggles of a virtu- 
 ous and patriotic nation to recover its 
 ancient and legitimate rights, shall cease to 
 interest a free, loyal, and generous people. 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 In every age, the passions of mankind — at- 
 tempts to resist what cannot be avoided— un- 
 foreseen events — a distress, whether real or ima- 
 ginary — have produced Political Revolutions. To 
 whatever cause such convulsions are to be attri- 
 buted, when the impulse is once given, thousands 
 feel, think, and act as one man. With passions, 
 perhaps, raging and tumultuous as the ocean in 
 a storm, they become calm and silent when 
 they hear the voice of their leader. — They 
 follow blindly when he calls. — It appears then 
 as if a whole people had but one will, and one 
 power, one head, one heart, and one arm. And 
 if no private ends of ambition or avarice are to 
 be gratified, it is immaterial what may have 
 been the origin or the circumstances of the 
 person whom they choose for their guide. 
 Birth, high station, or opulence, are not neces- 
 sary to procure him adherents ; the recollection 
 
X INTRODUCTION. 
 
 of former insignificance is lost in the admiration 
 of present heroism. — Tell, the deliverer of Swit- 
 zerland and the idol of his countrymen, was, a 
 simple mountain shepherd — Gustavus Vasa was 
 for a time, a miner — and Andrew Hofer, the re- 
 nowned chief of the Tyrolese patriots, was the 
 landlord of a village inn. 
 
 The character of this celebrated man, — his 
 incorruptible honesty, his tenacious adherence 
 to the religion and customs of his ancestors, and, 
 above all, the piety and humility which he dis- 
 played during the success of 1 809, in which he 
 bore so conspicuous a part, give him the most 
 indisputable claim to our admiration ; nor will 
 this admiration be diminished when we recollect 
 the meanness of his origin, the little education 
 he had received, and the confined circle in 
 which his early life had been passed. We are 
 not prepared by such recollections for the talent 
 and firmness which he exhibited at a moment so 
 unfortunate and yet so glorious for his country ; 
 or for the extraordinary skill and management 
 by which he kept together his patriotic countiy- 
 men (with a degree of secrecy that appears 
 almost incredible), even after peace was finally 
 concluded between France and Austria. 
 
 For the better comprehension, however, of 
 the conduct both of Hofer and his countrymen, 
 
INTRODUCTION. XI 
 
 it will be necessary to take a brief view of the 
 Tyrol — of its natural and political situation, 
 and of its history in modern times. 
 
 The country now known by the name of the 
 Tyrol, (a name derived originally from Teriolis, 
 an ancient castle in the valley of Venosta,) was 
 the ancient Vindelicia. At the destruction of 
 the Roman empire it fell into the hands of the 
 Goths, and afterwards became successively the 
 property of the Lombards, the Franks, the Ba- 
 varians, and Austrians. 
 
 The whole country is divided into ten dis- 
 tricts, and its population, including the bishop- 
 ricks of Trent and Brixen, and the Vorarlberg, 
 amounts to 700,000 souls. It is divided by 
 three regular chains of mountains. The Bren- 
 ner, which is situated between Innspruck and 
 Sterzing, being as it were the centre from 
 which they branch off. These mountains, 
 though their summits are covered with per- 
 petual snow, are notwithstanding rich in a great 
 variety of natural productions — in many of the 
 vallies corn is brought to great perfection, par- 
 ticularly in the Vintsghau and Pusterthal, and 
 in some of them are to be found chesnuts and 
 vines, and the most delicious fruits of Italy. 
 
 During the interval between ancient and 
 modern history, which is usually called " The 
 
 a 2 
 
Xll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Middle Ages," the Tyrol was distributed amongst 
 a variety of petty lords, spiritual and temporal, 
 Italian and German. It was for the interest of 
 the Emperors of Germany, that this state of 
 things should continue : for so long as it sub- 
 sisted, they could march their armies, whenever 
 it was their wish to do so, both to and from 
 Italy without opposition. In the time of Ro- 
 dolph of Hapsburg, Mainhard, Count of Goerz 
 and Tirol, was the first who gained ascendancy 
 in this mountainous region. He appears to 
 have been a person of distinguished abilities, 
 and was one of the principal instruments in the 
 elevation of Rodolph to the throne of the 
 empire. 
 
 It is not easy at this day to ascertain the 
 •precise boundaries of Mainhard's possessions, 
 nor is it worth while to make the attempt. It 
 js sufficient for our purpose to know, that upon 
 the death of Otho II. Duke of Bavaria, when 
 his possessions were divided, the Tyrol, or at 
 least a considerable portion of it, fell to the lot 
 of Count Albert ; that Mainhard afterwards ob- 
 tained it by marriage ; and that, in later times, 
 Margaret, called Maultasch, or the great mouth, 
 to whom the property had descended, and who 
 had connected herself by two successive mar- 
 riages, first with the Princes of Bavaria, and 
 
 
INTRODUCTION. Xlll 
 
 then with the house of Austria, granted the 
 reversion of her Tyrolese possessions to the 
 Dukes of Austria. This grant was subsequently 
 confirmed by Charles IV. and since that period 
 this province has remained an appanage to the 
 Austrian family. The princes of that house 
 bearing the title of counts of Tyrol. 
 
 Of all the princes of that illustrious house, 
 Frederic IV. son of Leopold II. who was killed 
 at the battle of Sempach, appears to have been 
 the first who understood the value, and exerted 
 himself for the improvement of this interesting 
 country. On attaining his majority, he received 
 the Tyrol and its dependencies as his share of 
 the patrimonial inheritance. He w T as early in- 
 volved in a war which broke out between the 
 Abbot of St. Gallen and the inhabitants of the 
 canton of Appenzel, and from an auxiliary it 
 was not long before he became a principal in 
 the contest. During the greater part of his life 
 indeed he seems to have been engaged in con- 
 tests with one or other of his powerful neigh- 
 bours, and it was not till after repeated defeats 
 and grievous losses, that he became sensible of 
 his error. He then seriously applied himself to 
 the interior administration and government of 
 the Tyrol, and to his exertions it was chiefly 
 owing, that, in defiance of the opposition of the 
 
 a 3 
 
XIV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Pope, the wealthy nobles and prelates, and 
 some of the imperial cities, the Tyrolese were 
 eventually enabled to establish a free consti- 
 tution. 
 
 The form of this constitution resembled that 
 which prevailed in most of the hereditary states 
 of the house of Austria* 
 
 As a source of revenue, the Tyrol was not 
 at any time highly estimated by the Austrian 
 government, although there can be no doubt that 
 considerable profit was occasionally derived from 
 the salt pits at Halle, and the mines of silver 
 and copper at Schwarz ; but the princes of that 
 dynasty always looked upon it with higher and 
 better feelings, as a possession for which their 
 ancestors had successfully contended with power- 
 ful competitors, and which, in the independent 
 spirit and generous loyalty of its inhabitants, at 
 all events secured to them a firm and impreg- 
 nable barrier on that side of their dominions. 
 
 * The college of the Land Captain consisted of a Land Cap- 
 tain, four Deputies of the estate of Prelates, who were the 
 Provosts of Gneiss and Neustift j the Abbot of Stambs and the 
 Provost of St. Michael ; four Deputies of the estate of Knights 5 
 the Deputies of the towns of Meran, Botzen, Jnnspruck, Halle, 
 and Sterzing 5 and the Deputies from the Judicatories and the 
 Estate of Peasants. The Bishops of Trent and Brixen with 
 theii chapters were also members of the land captainship. 
 
INTRODUCTION. XV 
 
 The Tyrol has indeed been emphatically called 
 " The shield of Austria." 
 
 The Tyrolese in the mean time were de- 
 votedly attached to the house of Austria. Amidst 
 the continual dissensions, and the frequent wars 
 by which Europe has been distracted, their 
 fidelity to that house continued unshaken. — 
 Under its mild and temperate sway their ancient 
 rights and privileges were preserved inviolate ; 
 even their prejudices were respected ; and the 
 natural consequence was, that, whilst other 
 countries were agitated by a restless spirit of 
 innovation and hostility to their existing go- 
 vernments, the Tyrolese remained tranquil and 
 unmoved, desirous of no change, and perfectly 
 satisfied with the freedom which they were 
 permitted to enjoy. With these feelings, and 
 with so decided an attachment to the govern- 
 ment of Austria, it is not surprising that when 
 they were transferred to the dominion of Ba- 
 varia, they should have felt so deeply the change 
 which took place in their situation. 
 
 By the eighth article of the treaty of Presburg 
 which was concluded in the year 1806, the 
 Tyrol and Vorarlberg were given to Bavaria in 
 exchange for the Dutchy of Wurtzburg, on the 
 same conditions, and with the same rights only, 
 
 a 4 
 
XVI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 which Austria had possessed when they were 
 subject to that government. 
 
 Thus a country which had continued under 
 the dominion of the same power, during the 
 space of four centuries and a half, was trans- 
 ferred to another by a foreign conqueror, with- 
 out any public act of its own, any formal con- 
 vocation of its Diet, or any customary homage 
 offered or accepted on either side. It was 
 solemnly promised indeed, by the court of Mu- 
 nich, that the ancient constitution of the Tyro- 
 lese should not be violated, that not an iota of 
 it should be changed, that all their rights and 
 immunities should be retained, and that their 
 real interests should be as carefully protected 
 by the Bavarian government as they had been by 
 that of Austria. But all these specious promises 
 were basely violated. 
 
 In fact the Bavarians did not understand the 
 temper and character of their new subjects, and 
 by the manner in which they treated them 
 proved themselves unworthy of being their 
 masters. Buonaparte himself did not scruple to 
 avow this opinion to F. M. Count Bubna. 
 " The Bavarians," he said, " did not know how 
 to govern the Tyrolese, and were not worthy to 
 possess that noble country." It seemed, indeed, 
 
INTRODUCTION. XV11 
 
 as if it were the opinion of the court of Bavaria 
 that the safest and easiest mode of governing 
 these mountaineers was to oppress, harass, and 
 impoverish them. The system* of vexation 
 which was adopted, irritated to madness a gene- 
 rous people, who were at all times easily con- 
 trouled by gentleness and kindness ; and we 
 cannot wonder that the attachment to their 
 ancient masters, which was so remarkable a 
 feature in their character, should be converted 
 into a deep and irreconcilable hatred of their 
 new ones. 
 
 In this state of things, this brave and unfor- 
 tunate people turned their eyes to the Archduke 
 John, whom they had long looked upon as the 
 patron of their country, and the mediator through 
 whom all their complaints and wishes were to 
 be carried to the Emperor. That prince, in his 
 frequent excursions and rambles through the 
 Tyrol, had become warmly attached to the 
 spirited mountaineers. He had given it as his 
 opinion, that the Tyrol might be made an im- 
 
 * The Constitution of Frederic which had lasted for so many 
 ages, was entirely overthrown. The representative states were 
 suppressed ; the public funds seized, all ecclesiastical property 
 confiscated j new taxes were levied daily, specie of course be- 
 came scarce j and the Austrian bond bills were reduced to half 
 their value. 
 
XVI 11 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 pregnable fortress, and that by proper discipline 
 its inhabitants might be formed into excellent 
 troops; and if the plans which he suggested had 
 been carried into effect, the battle of Austerlitz 
 might not have been so fatal in its consequences. 
 Unhappily he was not attended to. 
 
 It was not till the 11th of September, when 
 the French were rapidly advancing from Bou- 
 logne towards the Rhine, that the necessity of 
 taking some immediate steps to make amends 
 for this neglect became evident. The Arch- 
 duke was dispatched into the Tyrol, to repair in 
 a few days the evil consequences of a long 
 system of inattention. On the 10th of October, 
 proclamations were issued to regulate the ope- 
 rations of the armies : on the 14th the surrender 
 of Ulm was known at Elchingen; and at this 
 critical moment the Archduke was recalled from 
 the Tyrol. 
 
 It is impossible to account for that blind 
 infatuation, which suffers party spirit, or court 
 intrigues, to operate so far as to deprive a coun- 
 try of its only chance of safety in the hour of 
 extreme peril ; but so it was. The Archduke 
 and the Tyrolese deputies separated at Brun- 
 necken, mutually pledging themselves, whenever 
 an opportunity should offer, to hazard every 
 thing for the sake of restoring the Tyrol to its 
 ancient possessors. 
 
INTRODUCTION. XIX 
 
 It appears that a constant correspondence 
 was afterwards carried on between the Archduke 
 and the Tyrolese patriots, till the very moment 
 that their insurrection broke out. The prox- 
 imity of the district of Salzburg, whose vallies 
 extend into the heart of the Tyrol, contributed 
 in a great degree to facilitate this intercourse. 
 There can be no doubt that the patriots acted 
 by the advice, and with the concurrence of the 
 Archduke, but he was fated never to return to 
 a people who were so fondly attached to him, 
 and in whose defence, had he been left to him- 
 self, he would willingly have taken a most 
 active part. 
 
 The character of the Tyrolese is peculiarly 
 interesting. They possess an independent spirit, 
 a love of liberty combined with a love of order, 
 a generous frankness and loyalty, which at this 
 day is rarely to be met with. In every country 
 in Europe the poison of revolutionary principles 
 has more or less contaminated and corrupted 
 national character ; but the Tyrolese still retain 
 all their native energy and simplicity : like the 
 inhabitants of all mountainous countries, they 
 naturally acquire from their residences, and 
 from the magnificence of the scenery by which 
 they are surrounded, a habit of thought, re- 
 flexion and meditation ; but their seriousness 
 
 
XX INTRODUCTION. 
 
 does not degenerate into melancholy. They are 
 naturally a cheerful people, and their cheerful- 
 ness is remarkably displayed in the rapture with 
 which they pour forth their national melodies. 
 Their mode of singing is peculiar, passing sud- 
 denly from the natural tones of a deep bass 
 voice to the highest falsetto ; it bears some 
 resemblance to the horn of the iilpine shepherds. 
 
 The wild expression of their song discovers at 
 once that it belongs to men accustomed to 
 wander in the deepest solitudes, whose accents 
 traversing the vallies are caught up and echoed 
 by the herdsmen who inhabit the sides of the 
 opposite mountains. 
 
 The Tyrolese are an industrious people : their 
 industry of course acquires a stimulus from their 
 poverty,- — their wants, indeed, are few ; but few 
 and simple as they are, they could not be sup- 
 plied without a constant exertion both of inge- 
 nuity and labour. They are excellent mechanics, 
 of this numerous instances might be given; but 
 they are not simply mechanics, for some of them 
 have succeeded in those branches of mechanism 
 which proceed from and illustrate the most 
 recondite sciences. Among the most successful 
 of those who have attempted the higher me- 
 chanical artSj the celebrated Pierre Anik may 
 be mentioned, who, though a simple herdsman, 
 
INTRODUCTION. XXI 
 
 is become one of the best geographers in Ger- 
 many, and has constructed a globe of wonderful 
 perfection, which is to be seen in the castle of 
 Innspruck. Success in the science of mechanics 
 seems, indeed, to be the simple result of innate 
 genius. A man destitute of education, through 
 the force of an observant and reflecting mind, 
 may discover the secrets of nature and apply to 
 purposes of practical utility the means of power 
 and motion presented to him. In a country 
 like the Tyrol, abounding in streams, the inha- 
 bitants must of necessity apply to their use the 
 powers of the torrents and rivulets with which 
 each cottage is surrounded. Thus the moun- 
 tain torrents are seen to fall from step to step, 
 conducted by wooden aqueducts formed in the 
 rudest manner, but whose simple mechanism 
 performs the most important functions of the 
 household. The grinding of corn, the fabrica- 
 tion of oil, the sharpening of tools, the irrigation 
 of meadows, all is performed by the streams, 
 and by the mills which they set in motion. 
 Each peasant has his mill, and having once ob- 
 tained the disposal of his principle of action, he 
 modifies it according to his industry and his 
 wants. 
 
 Happily the Tyrolese are once more placed 
 under the dominion of their ancient sovereigns : 
 
XX11 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 it must be the wish of every honest and patri- 
 otic mind that they should ever continue so. 
 The nature of the country is admirably calcu- 
 lated to preserve its independence. Under the 
 protection of his own impenetrable fastnesses, 
 the hardy peasant is the best defender of the 
 soil he cultivates ; and if he avails himself with 
 skill and promptitude of the advantageous posi- 
 tions which the narrow passes or defiles in his 
 mountains afford him, an invading army may 
 be repelled, not only by fire-arms, but by masses 
 of stone rolled down from the heights under 
 which it must necessarily pass. Experience* 
 
 * The following interesting account of Lefevre's expedition 
 against the Tyrol was communicated by a Saxon officer, who 
 was himself a witness of what he describes. " We had pene-- 
 netrated to Innspruck," he says, " without great resistance, 
 and although much was reported about the Tyrolese stationed 
 upon and round the Brenner, we gave little credit to it, think- 
 ing the rebels to have been dispersed by a short cannonade, 
 and already considering ourselves as conquerors. Our entrance 
 into the passes of the Brenner was only opposed by small 
 corps, which continued to fall back after an obstinate though 
 short resistance : among others I perceived a man, full eighty 
 years of age, posted against the side of a rock, and sending 
 death among our ranks at every shot ; upon the Bavarians 
 descending from behind to make him prisoner, he shouted 
 aloud Hurrah, struck the first man to the ground with a ball, 
 seized the second, and with the ejaculation " In God's name /" 
 precipitated himself with him into the abyss below. Marching 
 
INTRODUCTION. XX111 
 
 has proved that this method of defence will 
 be often successful for a time, but it will not be 
 permanently so, and if left entirely to themselves 
 these bold mountaineers might again be com- 
 pelled to yield to an enemy superior in numbers 
 and military skill ; but it is to be hoped that 
 Austria will have profited by the lessons of ex- 
 perience, and that she will never again permit 
 the most attached and faithful of her subjects to 
 be sacrificed for want of that assistance, which 
 it is both her interest and her duty to give 
 them. 
 
 onwards, we heard from the summit of a high rock. — " Stephen, 
 shall I chop it off yet T to which aloud " Nay" reverberated from 
 the opposite side. This was told to the Duke of Dantzig, who, 
 notwithstanding, ordered us to advance. The van, consisting 
 of 4000 Bavarians, had just stormed a deep ravine, when we 
 again heard over our heads u Hans ! for the most Holy Trinity /" 
 Our terror was completed by the reply that immediately fol- 
 lowed — " In the name of the Holy Trinity cut all loose above /" 
 and ere a minute had elapsed, thousands of my comrades in 
 arms were crushed, buried, and overwhelmed by an incredible 
 heap of broken rock, stones and trees, hurled down upon us. 
 Annual Register for 1809. 
 
MfalherScuZp? 
 
J 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 ANDREW HOFER 
 
 Andrew Hofer was born on the 22d of No- 
 vember, 17^7, at the village of St Leonhard, 
 in the valley of Passeyr; # his mother's maiden 
 
 * The Passeyrthal, or Pusterthal, appears from documents in 
 possession of the counts of Eppan, in the early days of the 
 Swabian Emperor, to have belonged to the ancient earls of 
 Tyrol. Margaret Maultasch particularly favoured the inhabi- 
 tants of this valley, and in the year 1363, a few days before 
 the Tyrol became subject to Austria, gave them the right of 
 pasture on both sides of the Etsch as far as Eisack, (from 
 whence originated the famous trade in horses, which Hofer 
 carried on, as his ancestors had done, with great success,) as 
 well as the privilege of carrying salt, venison, and wine, over 
 the Gaufen j forbidding them, at the same time, to be either 
 molested or imprisoned within the limits of the bishopric 
 of Trent and Brixen. 
 
 The valley itself is peculiarly romantic, and has been not 
 
 B 
 
l'!,l.h.,h.;i ,u lhs.1,1 ,l,r t ;-t.. Juh ■Hi'" ,8:„fa John 
 
HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 ANDREW HOFER 
 
 Andrew Hofer was born on the 22d of No- 
 vember, 1767, at the village of St Leonhard, 
 in the valley of Passeyr;* his mother's maiden 
 
 * The Passeyrthal, or Pusterthal, appears from documents in 
 possession of the counts of Eppan, in the early days of the 
 Swabian Emperor, to have belonged to the ancient earls of 
 Tyrol. Margaret Maultasch particularly favoured the inhabi- 
 tants of this valley, and in the year 1363, a few days before 
 the Tyrol became subject to Austria, gave them the right of 
 pasture on both sides of the Etsch as far as Eisack, (from 
 whence originated the famous trade in horses, which Hofer 
 carried on, as his ancestors had done, with great success,) as 
 well as the privilege of carrying salt, venison, and wine, over 
 the Gaufen j forbidding them, at the same time, to be either 
 molested or imprisoned within the limits of the bishopric 
 of Trent and Brixen. 
 
 The valley itself is peculiarly romantic, and has been not 
 
 B 
 
2 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 name was Maria Aignetleiterin ; his father, 
 Joseph Hofer, kept an inn as his ancestors had 
 done for time immemorial. 
 
 Hofer was in his forty-seventh year when the 
 insurrection first broke out in the Tyrol; he 
 was of Herculean make, with black eyes and 
 brown hair — he stooped considerably, having 
 been accustomed from his youth to carry heavy 
 burthens over the mountains — -in his ordinary 
 walk his knees were bent, but his step though 
 slow was firm — his voice was soft and pleasing 
 — his countenance, though not generally ani- 
 mated, was expressive of great good-humour, 
 particularly when he smiled ; when he prayed, 
 his eyes were raised to heaven with the humility 
 and resignation of a Christian. 
 
 His education* was superior to that of the 
 
 improperly called by Baron Hormayr the Tyrolean Swisser- 
 land ; it extends from Lienz to Mulbach, a space of nearly ten 
 miles 5 the lower part is fruitful in corn,, but is made so by 
 incredible labour and industry. Its inhabitants, like all moun- 
 taineers, are hardy, powerful and energetic, but not free from 
 mistrust and superstition ; remote from frequented cities, they 
 have no opportunities of acquiring new ideas, but they cherish 
 with greater fondness those which they have received by inhe- 
 ritance from their forefathers. 
 
 * As a proof that he was not deficient in knowledge, it may 
 be remarked, that he was one of the Tyrolese representatives 
 in the Diet of 1790, when the deputies of the Passeyrthal were 
 not a little distinguished. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 3 
 
 generality of people in his station of life ; and 
 from his frequent intercourse with travellers, 
 as well as from the traffic which he carried on 
 in wine and horses, he had acquired a competent 
 knowledge of the Italian language which he 
 spoke fluently, but in the Venetian dialect; 
 he was popular through the whole country for 
 his integrity, his unaffected religion, his attach- 
 ment to ancient customs, and his dislike of all 
 innovation. 
 
 He wore the dress of his country, with some 
 trifling variation, — a large black hat with a broad 
 brim, adorned with black ribbons, and a black 
 curling feather — a short green coat, red waist- 
 coat over which were green braces, a broad 
 black girdle w r ith a border — : short black breeches 
 with red or black stockings, and occasionally 
 boots; he wore a small crucifix with a large 
 silver medal of St. George — to which were after- 
 wards added a large gold medal and chain sent 
 him by the Emperor ; it is not true that he ever 
 received the cross of Maria Theresa, or obtained 
 any rank in the Austrian army. 
 
 But that which was most remarkable in the 
 appearance of Hofer was his long black beard 
 which reached to his girdle, aad which, particu- 
 larly when he rode on horseback, had an extra- 
 brdinary effect. It had been an ancient custom 
 
 b 2 
 
4 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 for the innkeepers in these vallies to allow their 
 beards to grow; but Hofer had been principally 
 induced to cherish his in consequence of a wager 
 of two oxen which he had made with some of 
 his friends. 
 
 In his disposition he was phlegmatic, fond of 
 ease and tranquillity, averse from every new 
 and rash proceeding, and only to be roused to 
 action by his respect for the ancient customs of 
 his native country. He was cheerful and good 
 tempered, slow in decision, confined in his in- 
 formation, confused in his projects, superstitious 
 like the rest of his countrymen, and accessible 
 to the grossest flattery ; his head, indeed, was 
 turned by his unexpected good fortune in being 
 raised to a rank for which his own talents had 
 not qualified him. He was easily urged to 
 strong measures, the performance of which, 
 however, was usually prevented by the natural 
 mildness of his disposition ; and when his na- 
 tional pride or patriotism was roused, the un- 
 affected manner in which he expressed himself 
 appealed most powerfully to the feelings of his 
 hearers. He was wholly destitute of dissimu- 
 lation ; and generally convinced by the last 
 speaker, especially when he had found the wav 
 to his heart. The mention of a victory gained 
 by Austria, or in the cause of his native country — 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 5 
 
 an allusion to the old times of the Tyrol— an 
 enthusiastic word in favour of the sacred person 
 of the Emperor, or of the Archduke John, so dear 
 to every Tyrolean — were' appeals which had too 
 powerful an effect on the feelings of Hofer; and 
 he, who, according to the testimony of those who 
 attended him, conducted himself in his last mo- 
 ments " come un eroe Cristiano e martire intre- 
 pido," was Tor some time bathed in tears and 
 unable to utter a word. 
 
 In personal courage Hofer was certainly not 
 deficient, he has sufficiently proved it by the 
 manner in which he exposed himself for the 
 sake of his country ; but though it may appear 
 incredible it is a well known fact, that he 
 never was in action but once during the whole 
 of 1809, but was usually to be found (even 
 during the two decisive battles near Innspruck, 
 on the 29th May, and the 12th of August) 
 carousing in a public house. He was incapa- 
 ble of directing a march, attack, or indeed any 
 disposition of his troops, although much might 
 naturally have been expected from the complete 
 knowledge which he possessed of the country ; 
 and, in allusion to the superstitious weakness 
 of his character, he has been described leading 
 his troops with a rosary in one hand, and a bottle, 
 in the other. 
 
 B3 
 
6 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 He had a great antipathy to night watching, 
 and was particularly annoyed when business 
 interrupted his conviviality. With Hormayr, 
 (who was always actively employed, who de- 
 voted even his nights to business, and was never 
 at rest until he had possessed himself of the 
 most advantageous posts) Hofer was constantly 
 at variance. Once, indeed, he had nearly paid 
 dear for his devotion to the bottle. In the be- 
 ginning of August, General Rouyer advanced 
 with the Saxon contingent to Sterzing, and had 
 already possessed himself of Gossensass, where 
 Hofer had dined and was still sitting at table, 
 before he could be prevailed on to move ; till at 
 last when part of the town was blown up, he 
 was obliged to make a precipitate retreat from 
 the back of the house without his hat, and with 
 the greatest difficulty escaped by the Gasteig 
 to Passeyr. 
 
 It will naturally be asked how, with these 
 defects, Hofer could have acted the conspicuous 
 part he did, or how he was able to obtain so 
 completely the confidence of his countrymen? 
 His having been chosen as deputy from his native 
 valley to the Archduke John at Brunecken, in 
 November, 1805; his journey to Vienna in 
 January, 1809; the favour shown him in his 
 conferences with the prince on that occasion, 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 7 
 
 and his early success against the Bavarians, 
 when he defeated a strong body of troops at 
 Sterzinger Moos ; had excited much attention, 
 and the Tyrolese already looked upon him as a 
 man of consequence ; but, for his elevation, he 
 had certainly to thank Hormayr, who had been 
 induced to select him as a leader, on account of 
 his mild disposition and the honesty of his 
 character; for at such a moment it was neces- 
 sary that the enthusiasm of the people should 
 be guided by chiefs chosen from amongst them- 
 selves, whose views were free from suspicion, 
 and whose integrity could be relied on. To 
 this end was Hofer chosen, and Hormayr could 
 not have made a better choice ; for although his 
 head was not strong enough to bear his excess 
 of good fortune, he was never known to abuse 
 the powers he was entrusted with ; he became 
 the terror of his enemies, and the idol of his 
 countrymen. The name of Hofer cannot be 
 mentioned in the Tyrol to this day without 
 tears of affection, and his deeds will be long 
 remembered there with enthusiastic admira- 
 tion. 
 
 The principal rival of Hofer in this glorious 
 struggle, was Martin Teimer; he was Hofer's 
 superior in talents and understanding, but never 
 attained to that degree of popularity which he 
 
 b 4 
 
8 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 enjoyed. He was born on the 14th of August, 
 1778, at Schlanders in the Vintschgaw, he was 
 of the middle stature, and stooped a little — his 
 countenance was bold and prepossessing, but 
 expressive of great cunning, his forehead and 
 chin prominent, his nose marked and handsome, 
 and his eyes blue and piercing. When the 
 Tyrol, which had enjoyed a peace of ninety-three 
 years, was disturbed by Buonaparte in 179$, 
 Teimer served in the militia, and raised himself 
 from the rank of private soldier to that of Major, 
 and on several occasions considerably distin- 
 guished himself; particularly at Fay and Zam- 
 bana under Major General Baron Loudon, as 
 well as at Botzen and the Castle of Maultasch, 
 and in April 1799, at Scharlerjoch, in the memo- 
 rable advance of F. M. Count Bellegarde to 
 Engadein. In 1805 he was made captain of the 
 newly organized militia in the Tyrol; and 
 during the peace of 1806 kept a tobacco shop 
 at Clagenfurt. His disposition, like Hofer's, was 
 phlegmatic, and he was equally fond of ease and 
 conviviality : — they were naturally jealous of 
 each other, and in many instances, where, per- 
 haps, unanimity might have been of essential 
 service to the cause in which they were both 
 engaged, their jealousy is said to have prevented 
 the execution of several plans, which, had they 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. ( $ 
 
 been completed, might eventually have added 
 to their mutual glory. The old proverb,* " Es 
 1st nicht immer das nemliche, wenn zwey das 
 nemliche thun !" has been applied to them. 
 
 In the middle of March, 1809, F- M. Chas- 
 telar left Clagenfurt, and Teimer was appointed 
 chief of the peasants in the Upper Innthal, with 
 whom he advanced to Innspruck, and on the 
 morning of the 13th April, 8000 French and 
 Bavarian troops surrendered to him at the village 
 of Wiltau ; for which he was afterwards rewarded 
 with the title of Baron Von Wiltau, the rank 
 of Major in the Austrian army, the cross of 
 Maria Theresa and an estate. 
 
 It is, indeed, upon the whole, wonderful that 
 the plan which had been so ably devised for the 
 insurrection, should never have been discovered, 
 never betrayed, either intentionally or by acci- 
 dent, before it actually took place. The secret, 
 however, was nearly escaping more than once. 
 Nossing of Botzen, who had accompanied Hofer 
 to Vienna, talked about it very indiscreetly, and 
 GrafT, the banker at Botzen, profiting by the 
 insight he had by this means gained into the 
 intended operations, turned it to his own profit. 
 This man, principally on account of the pecu- 
 
 . * " It is not always the same, when two do the same !'.' 
 
10 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 niary assistance he gave to the cause, was 
 created Baron, and afterwards, though perhaps 
 undeservedly, decorated with the cross of Maria 
 Theresa. 
 
 Towards the end of the month of March, Hor- 
 mayr repaired to Gratz, where the Archduke 
 John had his head-quarters, and from him re- 
 ceived his final decision concerning the arrange- 
 ments for the breaking out of the insurrection. 
 From thence he hastened to F. M. Chastelar, 
 who was at Clagenfurt, and had afterwards ano- 
 ther interview w r ith the Archduke at Villach, 
 after which the following proclamation was 
 issued. 
 
 " To arms Tyroleans ! to arms ! The hour of 
 deliverance is at hand. The beloved Emperor 
 Francis, who has been for a time separated from 
 you, is again given to you, and calls upon you 
 to arm in the most holy cause — a cause which 
 has deprived him of hia best possessions, and 
 which has threatened the Imperial House itself— 
 a cause which after a long and treacherous peace 
 stands forth like a rock in the deluge — the last, 
 the only remaining defence of the liberty of 
 Europe. 
 
 " Now is the time either to draw your swords 
 while Napoleon is occupied in another part of 
 Europe in attempting to load the Spaniards with 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 1 I 
 
 a foreign yoke, or to wait till he has accom- 
 plished that project, and that he returns with 
 renewed force against Austria, to crush that 
 only remaining obstacle to his wish of universal 
 power; has he not insolently announced this 
 intention? has he not already called Joseph 
 Buonaparte an Archduke of Austria and Count 
 of Hapsburg ? 
 
 " The choice is made ! look up to us. Every 
 thing is already in motion ; that our resolution 
 may be not only immediately but powerfully 
 executed — look around, see the power and 
 alacrity that are on all sides displayed for the 
 common cause — and be faithful to Austria! 
 Already has the Archduke Charles swept the 
 plains of Amberg, Wurzburg, Ostrack and 
 Stockack, where within the space of a few days 
 he gained repeated victories over the chief com- 
 manders of the enemy. — Already has he shown 
 you on your frontiers the well known colours of 
 black and gold.* You will see again at your 
 head the beloved Archduke John, to whom 
 every spot of ground from Scharnitz to Mon- 
 tebaldo, and from Kreuzburg to Tonal, is known 
 and endeared; whose greatest pride is to be 
 yours entirely, and whose greatest pain is to be 
 separated from you. 
 
 * The colours of Austria. 
 
12 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 " It is impossible that a separation like that 
 of 1805 can again take place — a separation so 
 bitterly felt. — Now is the moment on which 
 depends the preservation or the complete des- 
 truction of the imperial dominions. — On the 
 Tyrolese Alps, called by Maximilian I. and 
 ; Charles the V. the shield and heart of Austria, 
 have the ancient princes of our House built their 
 hopes. There also we build our own. 
 
 " The unlucky peace of Presburg (read it, 
 brethren, and see if you can discover one article 
 that France and her confederates have not broken 
 and despised) has broken the link that connected 
 the Tyrol with Austria during the space of 443 
 years. The Tyrol was surrendered, but not 
 abandoned to the lawless will of an irritated 
 conqueror, or to the mercy of a heartless master ; 
 — no, even in this painful moment we gloried 
 in ' your ancient fidelity to Austria ;' our care 
 was to prevent all division and distribution of 
 lands, and to secure the ancient rights of your 
 constitution and country. 
 
 " With the reserve of all her ancient rights 
 and liberty, the Tyrol became in 1363 the pro- 
 perty of Austria. This contract between the 
 princes of Austria and the people of the Tyrol 
 has been rendered sacred by innumerable cir- 
 cumstances and agreements. 
 
 " Under the same restrictions, and with the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 13 
 
 same rights and titles only, did the Emperor 
 surrender the Tyrol ; and these stipulations were 
 made in the 8th article of the peace of P res- 
 burg. This last care for his departing lands 
 (since he received the signed treaty at Holitsch, 
 on the 29th of December, 1805) has been the 
 only solace of his tedious hours. 
 
 " The Royal Bavarian proclamation of the 
 14th January, 1806, declared that ' the Tyro- 
 lese should not only retain their ancient rights 
 and liberty, but that their welfare should be 
 promoted in every possible manner, and that 
 their wishes should be listened to with the 
 greatest attention. 
 
 " Many times were the words which the 
 king himself addressed to the deputies repeated, 
 and even printed, that " no iota of the consti- 
 tution should be changed" — that he honoured the 
 grief which the Tyrolese expressed for the loss 
 of their ancient masters, but that he hoped by 
 his constant care and attention to their wishes 
 to make himself equally regretted by them. 
 
 " How your honest hearts rejoiced at this 
 royal promise on the conclusion of the peace, 
 and yet at the end of a few months where was 
 your constitution? — your rights or your liberty ? 
 Where was the promised attention to your wel- 
 fare? — these liberties so bravely defended; 
 
14 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 those possessions which had been the rewards 
 of your fidelity, and which had for centuries 
 remained unpolluted, and undisturbed ; the 
 decrees of our public Diet, or the more limited 
 assembly of our fathers ? Where are your brothers 
 and countrymen — what is become of them ? — 
 despised and neglected they have been forgotten 
 by your oppressors, but from your memory they 
 can never be obliterated ! Clergymen, ministers 
 of altars, you have been the first objects of their 
 fierce attack. This was their plan, and alas, 
 what has been the result? — When a whole 
 nation has been deprived of its liberty and its 
 name, when its courage and magnanimity give 
 way to a tame indifference and servile submis- 
 sion, can there be found a better moment to 
 strike the blow and crush it at once and for ever ; 
 — this was their idea. 
 
 " But God be praised they have been de- 
 ceived, they are yet ignorant of any internal 
 revolt ; if without assistance they should ven- 
 ture to oppose the power of the mountaineers 
 they would only augment the evil. The Tyro- 
 lese have beheld with bitter feelings their 
 abbeys and monasteries destroyed, the property 
 of their churches stolen and carried away, their 
 bishops and priests exiled, their churches pro- 
 faned, and their chalices sold to Jews. They see 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 15 
 
 the Bavarians, and their yet more contemptible 
 colleagues, still eager to continue their work of 
 destruction and careless of the consequences. 
 
 " A higher power has withheld the just anger 
 of the Tyrolese until they were ripe for ven- 
 geance — until the hour of deliverance was come. 
 — It is now come ! — Now is the time for vou — - 
 for your clergy first to come forward to revenge 
 the indignities offered to the house of the Lord, 
 and to pour forth your vengeance from the 
 pulpit and the altar ; lay your hands upon your 
 hearts, and say, is it not a holy cause for which 
 we exhort you to rouse yourselves ? Is it not 
 the cause of faith— the cause of liberty ? Even 
 Buonaparte himself knows your power and 
 spirit; even he (who keeps the Holy chief of 
 the church in severe and painful imprisonment, 
 and who is indefatigably employed in all parts 
 of the world,) acknowledges it ; he has expe- 
 rienced and knows what a war with an irritated 
 and courageous people is, and trembles at it. 
 He will soon forbid the use of the Scripture and 
 the Talmud in Europe, and replace them by the 
 Alcoran of Egypt, with which he may sin on 
 unpunished. The family of Antiochus is not 
 extinct. 
 
 " Your knights and nobles, who, before the 
 institution of the tributary law, were all our 
 
16 HISTORY OF HOFER.' 
 
 equals, who were the gem of that once honour- 
 able constitution, who were never a source of 
 expense to their country or desired more than 
 an honourable name, are all destroyed. Even 
 there the Bavarians env}- and wish you to prove 
 your title to a nobility which has endured for 
 more than a century, wish to institute a new- 
 one as if nothing was valid but what came from 
 them, and as if they could create a patent of 
 nobility which is of so old a date. 
 
 " Your cities and your courts of justice ! in- 
 dustrious citizens and tradespeople ! — pious, 
 honest peasants ! — w T hat is become of you whose 
 interests have been sacrificed, and whose com- 
 merce with Italy has been destroyed ; and you 
 whose brothers and sons were accustomed to 
 cultivate your vines and till your fields, who, 
 now subject to the conscription, are hurried, 
 away to fight against Austria, your ancient 
 and lawful master, or to Spain, or against 
 Russia, or Prussia, where your German brethren 
 have already spilt so much blood, and whose 
 only reward has been scorn and contempt. 
 
 " The Bavarians have despised the bank bills 
 of Austria ; but without them they cannot find 
 credit ; they have rid you of this evil with the 
 loss of half your property, occasioned by the 
 scarcity of money — have imposed heavy taxes 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER 17 
 
 upon you, and have no mercy upon those who 
 were unable to pay them. — On this account 
 many oppressed landholders have been com- 
 pelled to quit their homes and the lands which 
 they had cultivated, and earn a subsistence as 
 day labourers, or reduced to depend on the gene- 
 rosity of those who were able to assist them ; 
 but from this moment the Austrian notes shall 
 not be chargeable to you, which is a proof of 
 what Austria hopes from you, and of what she is 
 ready to sacrifice to replace so noble a pearl in 
 the imperial crown. 
 
 " Tyroleans ! Tyroleans ! how can you brook 
 the loss of a name to which you once clung so 
 firmly. After the destruction of all your rights 
 and laws, your name, once so glorious, so highly 
 prized, is taken from you, as if you had commit- 
 some heinous crime, and that they wished thus 
 to punish it, that, for ages to come, your children 
 might recollect the crimes of their fathers. 
 
 " The Tyrol is now divided and called by 
 the names of the rivers, whose waters are as des- 
 titute of colour and taste, as you are of life and 
 spirit to oppose the treatment you have met 
 with. 
 
 " Compare with this wretched state — without 
 constitution, without power, without liberty, 
 and without a name, the former prosperity you 
 
 c 
 
18 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 enjoyed under the princes of Austria — recollect 
 the constitution formed by Frederick II. — the 
 warm attachment of the great Maximilian — the 
 attention of Charles V. — the anxiety for your 
 welfare shown by the Archduke Ferdinand and 
 Maximilian, Master of the Teutonic Order. Re- 
 collect that vigorous defence of your possessions 
 at Claudia against the French, the Swedes, and 
 the malcontents. — Were the Bavarians more ir- 
 resistible at Strub and Iglau than in the ever 
 memorable year, 1703, when the victorious Max. 
 Emanuel commanded in our vallies ? Are Na- 
 poleon's Generals greater heroes than Catinat 
 and Vendome, whose glory in those days re- 
 sounded through our mountains ? Ask your 
 fathers how the great Theresa defended her 
 rights against half of Europe. Do you recol- 
 lect the deeds of Joseph himself and the dangers 
 he has withstood under France, under the protec- 
 tion of Austria, which have served to perpetuate 
 his glory. 
 
 " When you recollect all this — when you re- 
 collect the treacherous conduct of the Bavarians, 
 in not adhering to the conditions of the Treaty, 
 and the manner in which they broke all the pro- 
 mises they had made — when you recollect that 
 you have never taken the oath of allegiance to 
 them— you will have no other thought, and your 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER 19 
 
 tongue will alone be able to pronounce the word 
 ' Deliverance.'" 
 
 Besides this proclamation, the following is an 
 extract from one, which, though much shorter, 
 was infinitely more popular. 
 
 " Well, then, be brave, be unanimous — it is 
 necessary for the redemption of your country. 
 Powder and shot shall be the food of your ene- 
 mies ; they will find a surer way to their hearts 
 than your prayers or your misfortunes have. 
 We will oppose them with arms and the ancient 
 Tyrolese courage. Every thing else may the 
 enemy plunder — we promise you compensation 
 and vengeance for it. He is a traitor and a 
 coward who deserts to their standard. In the 
 fields, the forests and the mountains which God 
 hath given you — where your children have 
 sought refuge from oppression, we, your saviours, 
 are at hand to receive you with open arms, and 
 to bring you in a few days back to your homes. 
 Take care that you are prepared, as the Austrians 
 are within your frontiers — but be cautious and 
 let not idle reports deceive you. Brave not 
 openly the power of your enemies, but let them 
 not gain the heights ; there you must remain 
 masters, to keep them day and night in perpetual 
 anxiety and to harrass them by constant skir- 
 mishes. Cut off all their communications, that, 
 
 c 2 
 
20 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 deprived of provisions and intelligence, they may 
 become alarmed and fly before you. As soon as 
 you see the Austrians at your frontiers, announce 
 the joyous intelligence throughout the whole 
 country by beacon fires and alarm bells. Young 
 and old to arms! for the Emperor and your 
 native country — for your liberty and welfare — 
 your deliverance." 
 
 The following proclamation of the Archduke 
 John made an extraordinary impression : — 
 
 " Tyroleans ! I am come to keep the promise 
 I made on the 4th November, 1 805 — that the 
 time would certainly come when I should have 
 the joy of again finding myself amongst you. 
 
 " Recollect the promises which you made me 
 when I took leave of your deputies atBrunecken, 
 which we were then not able to put in execu- 
 tion, not from your fault or mine, but on account 
 of the unprecedented misfortunes that befel us — 
 The peace of Presburg was the cause of all these 
 disasters — it broke the tie which had connected 
 you with Austria for five hundred years — but 
 even then the Tyrol would not be separated from 
 the Government of Austria, although the new 
 kingdom of Bavaria was desirous to augment its 
 power by the acquisition of so valuable a pos- 
 session. — Even the father of your country recol- 
 lected his beloved children, with the greatest 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 21 
 
 affection and with the ancient fidelity of Austria 
 He stipulated that the Tyrol should remain un- 
 divided — that it should retain all its rights and 
 liberties, its constitution, its tributary law — in a 
 word, 
 
 " That, in the same manner and with the same 
 rights and titles with which the Emperor had 
 possessed it, it should be made over to Bavaria, 
 and not otherwise. 
 
 " These were the stipulations made — these 
 which the faithful deputies urged in the most 
 touching manner to my brother the Emperor in 
 their audience of the 14th of December, 1806 — 
 and the Emperor felt assured at the solemn and 
 public manner in which his conditions were ac- 
 knowledged by Bavaria, which their deputies 
 confirmed. 
 
 " The conditions of the surrender were deli- 
 vered at Innspruck on the 10th April, 1806, and 
 the treaty was made public in the beginning of 
 June, without answering, however, any of your 
 demands, which were avoided under various fri- 
 volous pretences, in a manner not only unfriendly 
 but actually cruel, that they might not witness the 
 continued violation of the treaty, which, instead of 
 preserving, served only to banish from the Ty- 
 rolese all recollection of their former prosperity, 
 
 e S 
 
22 History of hofer. 
 
 " This article of the peace of Presburg the 
 Bavarians have kept as they have kept all others. 
 How the Emperor has permitted his honest peo- 
 ple to maintain this peace all the world knows, 
 and our enemies know better than any body. 
 
 " The Imperial Court must and will lay its 
 just and numberless complaints before the tri- 
 bunal of the world. It will justify its patience 
 and long forbearance, and to avoid the last over- 
 whelming stroke, it will struggle for its defence. 
 
 " Why is the war a holy one ? Why is it ne- 
 cessary, and ought to be general ? Why is it car- 
 ried on ? — Because so great a power cannot be 
 opposed alone, and therefore every body ought 
 to be unanimous and assist the cause — because 
 the restoration of ris-hts and libertv is to be 
 gained if attempted — because neither Germans 
 nor Hungarians, nor Bohemians ought to be 
 obliged to sacrifice their own honour and prospe- 
 rity, or to spill their blood as the blind instru- 
 ments of an avaricious government, to be forced 
 against their will to invade Russia or Turkey, 
 or to conquer the less powerful kingdoms of the 
 world. For these reasons it ought to be car- 
 ried on. 
 
 " The ultimate object of our cause is of the 
 greatest importance, therefore let our courage 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 23 
 
 and strength be great. The danger of the brave 
 is always less than that of the coward — it is not 
 the pursuer but the fugitive that falls. 
 
 " We have an enemy to oppose whose power 
 until this day nothing has been able to withstand ; 
 it has been every where victorious where it has 
 not found unanimity, indefatigable ardour, and 
 firm perseverance to oppose it — with these, no- 
 thing is impossible. We possess this firmness 
 and courage ; the same feeling pervades every 
 mind. Every thing is prepared for war, and 
 those who are unable to carry arms assist us w T ith 
 their good advice. 
 
 " Austria has sustained many dangers, and has 
 been victorious, the present is the greatest of 
 them all ; but there was never such unanimity, 
 such ardour in every heart. Austria is at hand 
 with a great power. Their courage is doubled 
 by the presence of the Emperor himself— at their 
 head stands the conqueror of Wurzburg and 
 Stockack, who is known and loved by every 
 German, and in whom they place the greatest 
 confidence. 
 
 " In a moment of such consequence to our 
 faithful combined power, in the midst of the ar- 
 dour for the holiest cause for which sword was 
 ever drawn, I plant the Austrian eagle in the 
 
 c 4 
 
£4 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 earth of the Tyrol, in which so many of my glo- 
 rious ancestors repose. 
 
 " In this eventful moment, when the ancient 
 prosperity of the Hapsburgs is returning to us, 
 I recall, as Duke Ferdinand did, 933 years 
 ago, the nobles, the prelates, the citizens, and 
 the peasants to the foot of that throne, which to 
 them has always been a place of solace and as- 
 sistance. 
 
 " The dispositions which the present situation 
 of affairs demands, are stated in a public order 
 issued by me. Arms, and the old Tyrolese cou- 
 rage, to gain the restitution of your rights is all 
 you desire, instead of misery and oppression ; and 
 your honour as well as your welfare requires it. 
 
 " This proclamation will bring back to you 
 the recollection of those days when twelve years 
 ago the enemy under Joubert was by your cou- 
 rage defeated at Spinges, Jenesien, and Botzen, 
 and obliged to fly the country. This moment 
 enables you to play the principal part in the 
 holy cause ; and would it be possible, Tyroleans, 
 for you not to wish to do so. 
 
 " Tyroleans ! I know you ; I am no stranger 
 to your vallies or mountains — I am confident 
 that you will realize the hopes of your fathers 
 and our highest expectations. 
 
 " Archduke John." 
 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEll. 25 
 
 It would be difficult to describe the impres- 
 sion which this and other proclamations of a 
 similar kind made on the minds of the enthu- 
 siastic Tyrolese. Their ardour seemed to re- 
 double, and thousands flocked to the standards 
 of their patriotic chiefs, determined to conquer 
 or to die in the holy cause. 
 
 The night* of the 8th of April was fixed for 
 the event on which depended the destiny of the 
 Tyrol. It was a dark gloomy night, but to- 
 wards morning the weather cleared up, and pro- 
 mised a fine day. Chastelar and Hormayr 
 passed an anxious night in riding through the 
 troops, to give the necessary orders for the in- 
 tended movements, and to see that every thing 
 was in a state of preparation. The stillness of 
 the night was alone broken by the heavy tread 
 of the advancing troops, the rattling of the ammu- 
 nition waggons and great guns, and the cheer- 
 ful voices of the bivouacers. 
 
 At three o'clock in the morning the ad- 
 vanced guard, under the command of Lieutenant 
 Colonel Goldlin of the chasseurs, was in motion. 
 Chastelar and Hormayr then harangued their 
 followers, and encouraged the ardour and eager- 
 
 * The signal was given by throwing saw-dust into the Inn, 
 which floated down, and was soon discovered and understood by 
 the peasants. 
 
26 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 ness with which they seemed to prepare for their 
 duties ; and in a few hours, to the great joy of 
 the Tyrolese, the thunder of distant guns and 
 the tumultuous din of alarm bells resounded 
 through the vallies. 
 
 In the mean time, Chastelar with his division 
 advanced up the the Drauthal, and F. M. Jella- 
 chich, who was in Salzburg, commanded Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel Baron Taxis to advance from 
 Oberpinzgau and Zillerthal up the Innthal to 
 Innspruck, with a detachment of chasseurs, and 
 of the Oreilly light horse, in order to join Chas- 
 telar over the mountains. At break of day, in- 
 numerable fires were discovered on the heights, 
 signals to the people that the work of deliver- 
 ance was begun— they were in a moment un- 
 derstood, and the whole country was in a state 
 of insurrection from one end to the other. 
 
 The Bavarian troops overcome with astonish- 
 ment at the suddenness of the event, knew not 
 which way to turn : every thing was in a state 
 of hurry and tumult. A column of French troops, 
 three thousand strong, who were on their march 
 from Mantua to Augsburg, were taken by sur- 
 prise and panic struck, and after a short but de- 
 termined resistance, were entirely defeated by 
 the peasants, and captured, together with all 
 their colours, eagles and guns. 
 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 27 
 
 Hofer and Teimer were in the mean time 
 in the valley of Passeyr. During the night of 
 the 8th of April, the following order was issued 
 by them to be distributed amongst the confede- 
 rates : — 
 
 PUBLIC ORDER. 
 
 " On the 9th of April, General Hiler ad- 
 vanced by forced marches from Salzburg into 
 the Oberinnthal, and F. M. General Chastelar 
 from Carinthia to the Pusterthal. On the 1 1 th 
 or 12th the former will arrive at Innspruck and 
 the latter at Brixen. 
 
 The Mulbach Clause will, by order of his 
 Royal Highness the Archduke John, be occu- 
 pied by the Pusterthal peasants, and the Kun- 
 tersweg by the Rittnern, that all those which 
 march out of Botzen and Brixen may be headed, 
 and that we may be possessed of the strongest 
 and most important position before the Bava- 
 rians fly from Brixen to Botzen, then nothing 
 will be able to pass. Kolbe, by order of the 
 Archduke, is to command at Kuntersweg and 
 to take care of such prisoners as may fall into 
 his hands, and to protect the persons and papers 
 of those Bavarian officers who have been distin- 
 guished for their inveteracv against the Austrian 
 government and the Tyrol, from all injury and 
 
28 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 ill treatment ; but on no pretence whatever to 
 allow them to proceed from Kitten to Botzen. 
 The pay of the men will be increased as soon 
 as the Archduke John and General Chastelar 
 arrive, and the officers will receive their pay, 
 as well at Kaltern and throughout that district, 
 as at Salurn and Neumarkt. At Kaltern, Joseph 
 Morandel is chosen commander by the Arch- 
 duke, and has received orders what to do. Count 
 Arzt commands at Nonsburg, and Baron Hor- 
 mayr is Commissary General. 
 
 " Given at Sand, in Passeyr, on the 9th of 
 April, 1809. 
 
 " Martin Teimer. 
 
 " Andrew Hofer, Publican.' 1 
 
 After the publication of this order, Teimer 
 hastened over the mountains to Oberinnthal, in 
 order to assist the Austrian troops that were en- 
 tering in that quarter, and to cut off the com- 
 munications of the Bavarians ; and Hofer, with 
 from 4 to 5,000 men, consisting of peasants from 
 the valley of Passeyr, Algund, Meran, &c. who 
 increased in numbers as he went, advanced over 
 the Gaufen to Sterzing, to meet the enemy from 
 Brixen. 
 
 The 8th division of the Austrian army, which 
 was to assist the operations of the Tyrolese under 
 
HISTORY Of HOFER. %Q 
 
 the command of F. M. General Chastelar, con- 
 sisted of three battalions of Hohenlohe and Bar- 
 tenstein infantry, three of Lusignan, one batta- 
 lion of the 9th Chasseurs, three squadrons of 
 Hohenzollern light horse, together ivith the 
 country militia, consisting of three battalions from 
 Clagenfurt, two from Villach, two from Juden- 
 burg, and two from Bruck; forming in the whole 
 sixteen battalions of foot and three squadrons of 
 horse. This force, however, Avas very deficient 
 in cavalry, and to that deficiency may be attri- 
 buted its frequent failure. 
 
 The advance of Chastelar and Hormayr 
 through the Pusterthal resembled rather the 
 triumph of a victorious army than the march of 
 one about to meet its enemies. They were 
 every where received with enthusiastic demon- 
 strations of joy — the village bells rang as they 
 passed, and men, women, and children of all ages 
 flocked in crowds to greet and cheer them by their 
 acclamations. Mothers brought their children 
 to look at them, and blind old men were led out 
 of their cottages that they might hear, and bless 
 their gallant countrymen. All endeavoured to 
 get near, that they might shake hands with 
 them, touch their clothes, or even kiss their 
 horses. 
 
 Between Lienz and Sillian, on the evening of 
 
30 HISTORY OF HOPER. 
 
 the 10th of April, they received news of the 
 attempt of the Bavarians on the bridge of St* 
 Lorenzen near Bmnecken, which had com- 
 pelled the Tyrolese to commence hostilities there 
 six-and-thirty hours sooner than was originally 
 intended. Wrede and Donnersberg had ad- 
 vanced with a squadron of dragoons, two batta- 
 lions of light infantry, and three guns, from 
 Brixen, with a view to quell the insurrection, 
 and by destroying the bridges to delay the ad- 
 vance of the Austrians, On the arrival of this 
 intelligence the advanced guard was ordered, in 
 the greatest hurry, to hasten forward with a 
 detachment of chasseurs and light infantry to 
 the assistance of the Tyrolese. Chastelar and 
 Hormayr put themselves at the head of the 
 Hohenzollern light horse and set off at a full trot 
 to the Mulbacher Clause and the heights of 
 Schabs, which was the centre of military opera- 
 tions in the Tyrol. 
 
 A strong detachment of the French column 
 we have before mentioned, had joined the Ba- 
 varians, and had taken their position in the 
 Eisackthal on the main road between Brixen 
 Clause and the bridge of Laditch.* At the 
 
 * The bridge of Laditch was formed of a single arch, sus- 
 pended between two tremendous rocks, over the road from Inn- 
 spruck to Italy and the Pusterthal — in old times criminals Were 
 executed here, ad pontem pendentem. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 31 
 
 beginning of the action with the Tyrolese they 
 attempted to break their line by a continued 
 fire, but for some time met with no success ; the 
 Tyrolese stood their ground firmly in spite of 
 repeated and violent attacks.— Towards evening, 
 however, the French were reinforced by about 
 1000 foot and 600 horse, and then only the 
 Tyrolese, overpowered by numbers, began to 
 give way. 
 
 At this critical moment Lieutenant Colonel 
 Gerarhdi appeared on the heights of Schabs 
 with seventy of the Hohenzollern light horse 
 and 200 chasseurs, who immediately charged 
 the enemy, shouting as they charged. For some 
 minutes the firing ceased — the Tyrolese broke 
 out immediately into expressions of joy, some 
 threw away their arms, some fell on their knees 
 to return thanks, while others embraced the 
 Austrians with tears in their eyes, calling them 
 brothers. 
 
 The Bavarians, who were astonished at the 
 sudden and unexpected arrival of this reinforce- 
 ment, retreated in the greatest disorder, and 
 were pursued towards Sterzing with a consider- 
 able loss of killed, wounded, and prisoners. 
 General Lemoine with about 2,000 French fled 
 in the opposite direction, towards Botzen, in 
 
32 JIISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 spite of General Bisson, who did all in his 
 power to encourage and rally them, and was 
 taken prisoner with all his men at Botzen. 
 
 Hofer, with his Landsturm, appeared on the 
 heights above Sterzing, in the night of the 10th 
 of April, and would have hastened to the as- 
 sistance of his countrymen at Brixen, but un- 
 happily he was completely surrounded by the 
 enemy. The Bavarians attacked him on the 
 following morning, opening their fire upon his 
 party on the plains of Sterzing Moos ; but the 
 Tyrolese sharpshooters, who were sheltered by 
 rocks, made dreadful havoc amongst them, and 
 the artillery-men were several times shot away 
 from their guns. At length the Tyrolese made 
 a desperate charge, armed with spears, pitch- 
 forks, and any implement of offence they could 
 collect, rushed upon the Bavarians like a tor- 
 rent ; while others, who were stationed on the 
 heights, hurled huge masses of rocks and trees 
 upon those beneath. After a desperate struggle 
 which lasted for some time, the Bavarians gave 
 way, and having lost several of their best offi- 
 cers, and above 240 men killed and wounded, 
 threw down their arms and surrendered. About 
 580 prisoners were conducted, immediately after 
 the action, to Baron Sternach's castle at Wolfs- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 33 
 
 thrun, (a league distant from the field of battle), 
 overhanging the main road from Sterzing.* 
 
 Hofer at this moment received intelligence, 
 that the French column, under the command of 
 Generals Bisson and Lemoine, which had marched 
 from Mantua, had joined the Bavarians near 
 Brixen ; that the peasants had prevented the de- 
 st^iction of the bridges of Laditch and St. 
 Lorenzen, and that Chastelar had hastened up 
 Pusterthal to their assistance ; orders were there- 
 fore immediately issued for a pursuit, so that the 
 peasants of the Innthal might attack them in 
 the front at the same time that the peasants of 
 the Whippthal attacked their rear. 
 
 A detachment, with one squadron of Bavarian 
 light dragoons, and some Barenklau infantry, 
 under the command of Wrede and Donnersberg, 
 began their march from Sterzing to Innspruck 
 over the Stellenberg and Brenner, but were 
 much harassed in the narrow pass of Lueg by 
 the peasants, who had taken their stations among 
 the surrounding rocks. Their progress was also 
 constantly impeded by immense heaps of trees 
 thrown across the road, by bridges broken down 
 
 * During this action, a female peasant was seen in the thickest 
 of the fight encouraging the men, and herself hurling stones at 
 the enemy. 
 
 D 
 
34 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 and destroyed. In the mean time they com- 
 mitted every sort of excess during their march, 
 plundering and maltreating every one they met; 
 a conduct which did not produce the effect they 
 intended — that of intimidating the peasants — 
 but rather augmented that angry feeling which 
 was already sufficiently strong, and gave a more 
 decided character to their hatred of their op- 
 pressors. 
 
 During these proceedings the following letter 
 from Chastelar was printed, and distributed 
 throughout the country. 
 
 " Brave Tyroleans ! I am already in the 
 midst of you. My troops have taken up their 
 position near Brixen and on the heights of 
 Schabs, by which means all communication be- 
 tween the enemy and Italy is prevented. I 
 have, at the same time, dispatched a strong divi- 
 sion of horse and foot, and a supply of ammunition, 
 over the Brenner to your assistance. Another 
 division has marched towards Botzen. Remain, 
 therefore, for the present at your posts, that you 
 may cover my flank. 
 
 " The capital will probably by this time be in 
 possession of the advanced troops of Field Mar- 
 shal Jellachich's division from Salzburg. On 
 the first news of your being engaged with the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 35 
 
 enemy, which I received when I was yet far 
 from you, I hastened to your assistance, march- 
 ing day and night. 
 
 " My inarch from the borders of Carinthia, 
 through Lienz to Brixen, has been performed 
 without halting, which proves how your ardour 
 and courage have inspired my troops, and how 
 eagerly they desire to become brothers of the 
 brave Tyrolese. 
 
 " Your prisoners, who have witnessed your 
 intrepidity, shall be pledges for your personal 
 security, they shall suffer if the horrors which 
 the Bavarians have committed within these few 
 days at Mauls, Sterzing, and Gossensas, are re- 
 peated. 
 
 " These days will be perpetuated in the history 
 of the Tyrol. Your names will be handed down 
 to your posterity, and your children will glory 
 in the deeds of their fathers. You will realize 
 the high expectations which the beloved Arch- 
 duke John has formed of you. 
 
 "Tyroleans! trust me, as I trust you.— Per- 
 severe and be courageous. In a few days the 
 great work will be performed, and we shall have 
 effected your deliverance ! ! 
 
 " Marquis Chastelar, Field Marshal 
 
 " Muhlbach, nth April, 1809." 
 
 33 2 
 
36 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 From the enthusiasm displayed by the pea- 
 sants, and the hatred which they manifested of 
 the Bavarians, when the advanced guard of the 
 Austrian army appeared before Brixen, it was 
 feared they would commit some excess, and 
 Hormayr immediately issued the following pro- 
 clamation to tranquillize them. 
 
 " Faithful Tyroleans ! so true to your religion 
 and so attached to your native country, the 
 greatest pride of my heart is to be your country- 
 man, and the happiest moment of my life is that 
 in which 1 am able to take a part in your deli- 
 verance. 
 
 " Yes, you have proved yourselves worthy to 
 be free, you have proved that you deserve that 
 constitution which existed while the Tyrol be- 
 longed to Austria, but which has been despised 
 and destroyed since the Emperor Francis has 
 ceased to extend his sceptre over the beloved 
 
 Tyrol. 
 
 " You have proved yourselves worthy to be 
 
 free, do not, therefore, give way to your indig- 
 nation and become ungovernable, but act with 
 unanimity and coolness, determined to die or 
 to be free. 
 
 " To injure the feeble is contemptible : — No 
 Tyrolean will allow himself to be accused of 
 such a deed — to follow the example of those 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 37 
 
 who have nothing to lose, who molest and 
 plunder the peaceful and inoffensive, would 
 inevitably sow the seeds of discord and disunion 
 amongst us and ruin our cause. 
 
 " I know the deeds of your fathers, our rights 
 and liberties — I have written the history of my 
 native country, and I will try to merit a place 
 in it myself; — but without discipline, order and 
 obedience, nothing will prosper ; — I command 
 you, in the name of the Emperor, to be tranquil, 
 and will punish all those who disobey his orders. 
 — In the name of the beloved Archduke John, 
 in that of Chastelar, the brave leaders of the 
 Austrian army, your saviours — I shall treat the 
 first person who creates disturbance, or commits 
 excesses, as an enemy to the country — his 
 strength is to be used only in its defence." 
 
 " Joseph Baron Hormayr, 
 " Intendant of the Emperor." 
 Brixen, \3th April, 1809. 
 
 On the 10th of April the peasants of the 
 Innthal rushed to arms. — The signal was given 
 that all was ready for the commencement of 
 hostilities, and women and children were em- 
 ployed to carry about and distribute papers on 
 which were written, " S'ist zeit."— It is time ! 
 
 On the morning of the 1 1th, more than 20,00Q 
 men were collected on the height above Inn- 
 
 d 3 
 
38 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 spruck,andthe Bavarian piquets at Martinswand, 
 Arams, Komaten and Berglsel, retreated towards 
 the city ; — all the roads on which it was possible 
 for the enemy to find an outlet were broken 
 up, and barricades of trees piled across them. 
 The bridges were destroyed, and every measure 
 taken to prevent their escape. The enemy, 
 meanwhile, placed guns on the two bridges of 
 the Inn, and took up the most advantageous posi- 
 tions of defence that could be found. 
 
 Early in the morning of the same day the fire 
 was opened with great violence, and a strong 
 body of peasants, armed with muskets and long 
 poles with bayonets fixed to them, possessed 
 themselves of the bridge of Mohlauer. 
 
 The Bavarians, who were stationed on the 
 upper bridge of the Inn, could not withstand the 
 impetuosity of the Tyrolese, and were speedily 
 dislodged and killed at their guns before they 
 had time to discharge them. The peasants 
 rushed on, waving their hats and shouting 
 " Long live the Emperor Francis — down with 
 the Bavarians," and completely routed them. 
 In the narrow part of the road to Hotting, many 
 of the enemy were struck down by the butt- 
 ends of muskets, while others were thrown over 
 the bridge into the water and drowned ; all that 
 could escape, retreated hastily into the city, 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 39 
 
 where they were closely followed by the Tyro- 
 lese who thronged in numbers through the 
 gates. The city was garrisoned by the regi- 
 ment of Kinkel, one squadron of cavalry and 
 some detachments of light infant^. 
 
 It was 9 o'clock in the morning ; — the tumult 
 and confusion became general. — The Bavarians, 
 who had stationed themselves on the tops of 
 the houses and at the windows, could not with- 
 stand the incessant irregular fire of the peasants, 
 soon abandoned their posts, threw down their 
 arms in the streets, and begged for mercy ; but 
 in the last extremity many of them defended 
 themselves with the greatest intrepidity, and 
 those who were stationed at the barracks stood 
 their ground to the last man. Colonel Dittfurt 
 was everywhere encouraging, entreating, and 
 menacing his men, in the same breath, and 
 fighting in the most desperate manner, as if he 
 thought every thing depended on the fate of 
 the day. 
 
 The Tyrolese were in possession of the house 
 of the Commander in Chief (Kinkel) and were 
 pressing him to surrender, when Dittfurt, who 
 had already received two wounds in his body, 
 came up and attacked them alone sword in hand 
 — a third ball struck him in the breast, and as 
 he sunk on his knees a stream of blood gushed 
 
 d 4 
 
40 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 from his mouth; — as some peasants came to 
 take him prisoner, he raised himself up, and 
 called faintly to his men to come on and not to 
 be cowards, when he received a fourth ball in 
 his head and fell senseless. — A few minutes 
 afterwards Lieutenant Colonel Spansky was 
 shot dead from his horse at the corner of a street, 
 and the main body of infantry threw down their 
 arms. 
 
 The cavalry, who, in the beginning of the 
 fight, had done the most execution, were at 
 length thrown into disorder. The Tyrolese, as 
 soon as they saw them approaching, dispersed ; 
 at the same time keeping up an irregular fire, 
 which made dreadful havoc, without their being 
 able to revenge it. — On the surrender of the 
 infantry they were panic struck, and, finding 
 none to support them, fled in all directions, re- 
 gardless of the entreaties of their officers ; — some 
 rode furiously about the streets not knowing 
 which way to turn, while others stood motion- 
 less, apparently disregarding their fate. — In this 
 moment of confusion the Tyrolese rushed upon 
 them, and forcing them with their pitch-forks 
 to dismount, got upon their horses. 
 
 This Dittfurt, supported by three other men, 
 was supposed to have been the principal cause of 
 separating the Tyrol from Austria. Hoffstetten 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 41 
 
 and Wieg, Circle Directors, and Count Welsberg, 
 Commissary General of Etsch Circle, were the 
 persons alluded to. 
 
 HofFstetten, the first of these, the Bava- 
 rian agent in the Berctholdsgaden, had always 
 been noted for the immorality of his life; — 
 like the Parolles of Shakespeare, he was a mix- 
 ture of vanity and ignorance, of real cowardice 
 and affected bravery. He was known as 
 Circle Captain of the district of Pusterthal, and 
 in that capacity had gained universal hatred; 
 he was entirely under the influence of an aban- 
 doned woman who was the chief depository of 
 all his secrets, and through whom the Austrian 
 emissaries found it no difficult matter to pro- 
 cure access to him. 
 
 Wieg was a man of great spirit, prudence, 
 and activity, and of acknowledged rectitude ; — ■ 
 he was twice sent upon a secret mission to 
 Vienna, in 1799 and 1805. This mission was 
 ostensibly under the direction of the Baron 
 Gravenreuth, who himself was merely an instru- 
 ment of Comte d'Antraigues and the Swedish 
 Ambassador, General Armfeldt, whose intrigues 
 were the principal cause of that bad understand- 
 ing between the Courts of Austria and Bavaria, 
 which has -been attended with such disastrous 
 consequences not only to Germany, but to the 
 
42 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 whole of Europe. — Wieg came to the Tyrol full 
 of the ideas which he had acquired in this school, 
 though not all congenial to the feelings of those 
 simple minded peasants. 
 
 Count Welsberg was not destitute of talents, 
 but was without energy ; disappointed ambition 
 seems to have been the principal motive for his 
 conduct; he was of high rank, and had filled 
 eminent stations, but failing in some object 
 which he was anxious to carry, he refused from 
 pique what was his due — what his ancestors had 
 enjoyed before him, and what he would cer- 
 tainly have obtained; — he broke off suddenly 
 his negociations with the Court of Austria, and 
 in a fit of anger and resentment, exerted all his 
 faculties in opposition to it. 
 
 Dittfurt, the fourth of these opponents of 
 Austria, first distinguished himself in the val- 
 ley of Fiemme (Fleims Thai), where the pea- 
 sants first manifested a determination to resist 
 the new system of recruiting at that time 
 adopted. — Dittfurt, then Lieutenant Colonel, 
 was sent against them in January 1809, with 
 his troop; and in spite of the resistance of 
 the civil commissary Riccabona, he committed 
 excesses which increased instead of allaying the 
 irritation of the people ; proud of an easy victory, 
 he hastened with Wieg to Munich, where he was 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 43 
 
 immediately promoted. — -He boasted publicly 
 ■ ' that with his regiment and two squadrons he 
 could check the ragged mob." — This produced 
 confidence at Munich ; in spite of which, how- 
 ever, the Commander in Chief of the Bavarians 
 gave orders, in the night of the 1 1th April, 1809, 
 for active operations.* 
 
 * Letter from General Kinkel to the Bavarian Lieutenant 
 Colonel Wrede, at Brixen. 
 
 ' ' Since the arrival of the last letter of the Lieutenant Colonel, 
 we have received an account of the carrying of the bridge of 
 St. Lorenzen, which, however, appears not to have been as yet 
 necessary, and, at all events, we think that a day on which the 
 country people are usually accustomed to assemble was ill 
 chosen for such an undertaking. 
 
 ' ' It is necessary that the post at Brunecken should be retaken, 
 for the furtherance of Military operations, because by this 
 means a situation will be possessed that will enable us to wit- 
 ness the consequences of the Levee-en-masse of the hostile 
 troops of peasants. The Lieutenant Colonel will, therefore, on 
 the receipt of this letter, make such dispositions as will put him 
 in possession of the post at Brunecken within twenty-four 
 hours j— one, or, at most, two companies will be sufficient 
 for such an undertaking. — To ensure the safe retreat of this 
 detachment, it would be advisable to take up another position 
 at Mulbach and Neustift, and a party must defend the Her- 
 mitage at Mulbach. — As soon as the post at Brunecken is 
 retaken, a strong patrol e must be sent forward to Jenichen, 
 and even farther in advance if possible 5 — and to ensure the 
 safe retreat of this patrole, after it has been absent a certain 
 time, a second party had better be sent to meet it, which, if ne- 
 
44 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 In the action at Innspruck, here mentioned, 
 Dittfurt saw that all that was left for him 
 was to die gloriously, and he fought like a 
 hero, till, covered with wounds, he was at length 
 made prisoner by the very peasants whom he 
 had so much despised; after lingering twelve 
 
 cessary, must disengage the first. The roads from Mittewald 
 to Schabs must, during these operations, be diligently patroled 
 by the detachments stationed at Mittewald and Oberauj — and 
 the Commissary General is required to publish a proclamation 
 in my name, stating " that every peasant found with arms in 
 his hands will be put to death instantaneously, as well as every 
 one concerned in instigating the insurrection" — an order which 
 the Lieutenant Colonel will know how to put in execution : — 
 he is to take care that this proclamation be promulgated, and 
 will endeavour to do it as speedily as possible. In case the 
 Commissary General should not be competent to such a task, 
 the Lieutenant Colonel will proclaim that the insurgents are 
 considered as rebels to the military power, and consequently 
 will be treated as such. 
 
 " We do not expect that the patroles already mentioned will 
 be made prisoners j should this, however, be the case, an im- 
 mediate provision for their being restored must be made the 
 first point in the proclamation. 
 
 ' ' The capture of Brunecken does not, however, depend upon 
 the publication of the proclamation, and the Lieutenant Colonel 
 is to answer for the immediate capture of that post, which he 
 ought never to have surrendered so hastily. 
 
 " In the communication of the Lieutenant Colonel, nothing 
 is mentioned concerning a sort of defence, or rather resistance, 
 on the flank of the troops at Jenichen, which, until the com- 
 manding officers themselves have explained it, will be considered 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 45 
 
 days in a delirious fever he breathed his last. — 
 F. M. Chastelar paid him every attention, and 
 tried every possible means of alleviating his 
 sufferings by kindness and care ; but Dittfurt 
 was insensible to it all. and continued to rave 
 about butchering peasants and the defence of 
 Kufstein. — Once only he spoke to Chastelar, 
 and then sarcastically said " if every one had 
 behaved as I have, you would not have been 
 here," alluding to General Kinkel who had 
 commanded the Prussian fortifications in 1806. 
 Dittfurt died unregretted ; for his character, 
 and conduct were not calculated to gain esteem ; 
 but as a soldier he was highly estimated, and 
 his services merited the greatest praise. 
 
 As Dittfurt lay half fainting from loss of 
 blood in the guard house at Innspruck, sur- 
 as a charge against them. Commanders of from twenty to forty 
 men should not yield to a superior number of unskilful peasants, 
 unless they can prove it to have been unavoidable ; but nothing 
 of this is mentioned in the dispatch. 
 
 " Innspruck, 11th April, 1809. 
 
 " Sent at Ten o'clock at night 
 tc from 
 <c Lieutenant General Kinkel, 
 " Commander in Chief." 
 
46 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 rounded by his disarmed companions, he asked 
 " who had been the leader of the peasants," — ■ 
 " No one," was the answer, " we fought equally 
 for God, the Emperor, and our native country :" 
 — " That is surprising," replied Dittfurt, " for 
 I saw him frequently pass me on his white 
 horse." 
 
 This accidental and insignificant speech made 
 the greatest impression upon the minds of the 
 peasants, who are strongly addicted to super- 
 stition, and from that moment they were con- 
 vinced that St. James, the patron of the town 
 of Innspruck, had fought with them.* 
 
 At 1 1 o'clock Innspruck was in possession of 
 the peasants, nearly the whole of the Bavarian 
 troops being made prisoners, consisting of the 
 Commander-in-Chief General Kinkel, with his 
 regiment, one squadron of cavalry, four six- 
 pounders, several ammunition waggons, all the 
 baggage and provisions, and two colours. Ma- 
 jor Teimer particularly distinguished himself on 
 this occasion, having made prisoners with his 
 own hand, Count Lodron, Commissary General 
 
 * The Spaniards in their wars with the Moors, pretended 
 that St. James was seen in several battles on a white horse 
 defending their cause. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 47 
 
 for the district of the Inn, and the French Colo- 
 nel Constantin, whom Buonaparte had sent to 
 Innspruck to watch the proceedings of the Ba- 
 varians. 
 
 A small party of cavalry, amongst whom was 
 Count Erbach, had escaped out of Innspruck 
 during the confusion, but they were pursued 
 and taken prisoners by Joseph Speckbacher at 
 a short distance from the town, together with the 
 Bavarian piquet, at the bridge of Volders, who 
 on the first alarm had taken refuge in a convent, 
 but were soon dislodged by the Tyrolese, who 
 burst open the gates by means of an immense 
 fir tree, which was carried by fifty men, and used 
 as a battering ram. 
 
 The Tyrolese, after this decisive victory, were 
 so elated that their joy knew no bounds, nothing 
 was heard but shouts and rejoicings. The im- 
 perial eagle was taken down from the tomb of 
 Maximilian, decorated with red ribbons, and car- 
 ried through the streets amidst the acclamations 
 of the people, to the house of Baron Taxis, 
 where it was fixed, and where the peasants 
 flocked in crowds to kiss and look at it. The 
 pictures of the Emperor and the Archduke John 
 were placed on a sort of triumphal arch, sur- 
 rounded by lighted candles, which were kept 
 
48 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 constantly burning, and every one that passed 
 bent his knee before them, crying, " Long live 
 the Emperor ! " 
 
 These rejoicings, however, were not of long 
 duration. The victorious peasants, who, over- 
 come by the fatigues of the day, had fallen 
 asleep in the streets, or in the orchards around 
 the town, were suddenly awakened at 3 o'clock 
 on the following morning, by the alarm bells of 
 the city, and of all the adjacent villages. It was 
 soon discovered that a strong column of Bava- 
 rians and French were advancing towards Inn- 
 spruck, and at 5 o'clock they appeared on the 
 heights of Berg Isel. Lieutenant Margreiter, 
 with a detachment of the advanced guard, was 
 the first who attempted to enter the town; but 
 he had scarcely passed the triumphal arch when 
 he received a mortal wound in his breast, and 
 fell' from- his horse. The gates were immedi- 
 ately barricaded, with casks, waggons, and every 
 thing that could be found for the purpose. The 
 doors of all the houses were closed up, and every 
 preparation was made to receive the enemy. 
 
 In the mean time the combined troops of the 
 enemy arranged themselves in order of battle, 
 taking up two different positions. The French, 
 under the command of Lieutenant General Bis- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 49 
 
 son* occupied the ground between the Abbey 
 of Wiltau and the village of that name. The 
 Bavarians placed themselves to the left of the 
 French on the ground between Wiltau and the 
 river Inn. The French having the river Sill in 
 their rear, and the Bavarians the rocks of Berg 
 Isel, which were covered with Tyrolese sharp- 
 shooters. Chastelar in the mean time had pushed 
 on from Sterzing, and the detachment of Aus- 
 trians from Salzburg was rapidly advancing up 
 the Inn thai, so that the enemy found themselves 
 completely surrounded and were far from being 
 satisfied with their situation. 
 
 Teimer had entered the city on the preceding- 
 day, just before Dittfurt fell, and during these 
 preparations he had an interview with his pri- 
 soner General Kinkel, whom he compelled to 
 write a letter to the enemy, begging them to 
 send some confidential person into the town to 
 whom he might explain the true state of afFairs. 
 This letter, which was immediately dispatched, 
 had the desired effect, and in a short time Colo- 
 nel Wrede, accompanied by a French Colonel, 
 entered the town. These were immediately 
 attacked with such fury, that all who were able 
 retreated in haste to the main army, but not be- 
 fore they had lost 200 men ; while the Tyrolese, 
 
 * Bisson had the command at Mantua when Hofer was shot. 
 
 E 
 
50 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 during the three days constant fighting of the 
 11th, 12th, and 13th, only lost in all 26 men, 
 killed and wounded. 
 
 Wrede and the French officer that accom- 
 panied him were detained by order of Teimer, 
 while the rest of the prisoners were allowed to 
 return to the enemy. They on their return gave 
 such an exaggerated account of the strength, as 
 well as the fury of the Tyrolese, that the French 
 were in the utmost consternation, and the Ba- 
 varians were confounded by the loss of their 
 commander, as well as alarmed at the news they 
 heard. 
 
 Teimer, accompanied by Baron Taxis and the 
 brave Atzwanger, commander of the armed Bour- 
 geois, together with several other chiefs of the 
 peasantry, repaired soon after to the French 
 lines. He found the French staff on a rising- 
 ground near the village of Wiltau, next the 
 chateau of Count Wolkenstein. General Bis- 
 son received him courteously, affirmed that he 
 intended no injury to the town, and merely de- 
 manded that his troops might be permitted to 
 march unmolested to Augsburg. He made no 
 stipulation for the Bavarians. Teimer replied, 
 that he would hear of nothing less than the sur- 
 render of the whole army ; upon which Bisson 
 answered, that he would rather sacrifice every 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 51 
 
 man under his command than submit to such 
 humiliation. Teimer did not deign to reply, 
 but quitted him abruptly and returned to 
 the Tyrolese, who immediately opened a fire 
 upon the enemy, which made dreadful havoc 
 amongst the French grenadiers, and they w r ere 
 so alarmed at the shouts and impetuosity of the 
 peasants, that they stood almost motionless, 
 scarcely returning the fire which diminished 
 their numbers at every moment. Seeing their 
 desperate situation, the French officers used every 
 means in their power to induce Bisson to sur- 
 render on honourable terms to the Tyrolese, and 
 recalled Teimer to arrange with him the con- 
 ditions on which he would accept their submis- 
 sion. Bisson, however, partly from a feeling of 
 pride, and partly from the fear that such an act 
 would bring down upon his head the wrath of 
 his inexorable master, was for some time unwiL 
 ling to sign the articles of surrender.* 
 
 The following articles of surrender were 
 signed by Teimer. t 
 
 * It was the interest of Buonaparte to bury this unfortunate 
 incident in oblivion, and Bisson, therefore, instead of sharing 
 the fate of Dupont and Villeneuve, was afterwards appointed 
 Governor of Mantua ; and the French and Bavarian forces were 
 thus compelled to surrender to a rude, undisciplined peasantry, 
 whom they had always affected to despise. 
 
 f As a reward for his eminent services on this occasion, 
 Teimer was created Baron Wiltau. 
 
 E 2 
 
52 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 " In the name of Francis the First, Emperor 
 of Austria, the French and Bavarian troops at 
 Steinach and Wiltau agreed to the following 
 conditions of surrender. 
 
 1st. That the French and Bavarian army shall 
 lay down their arms immediately. 
 
 2dly. That the whole body of the 8th divi- 
 sion of the army shall deliver themselves up to 
 the Austrian troops at Schwaz. 
 
 3dly. That all the Tyrolese who have been 
 made prisoners by these troops be set free. 
 
 4thly. That the officers of the French and 
 Bavarian army shall be set free, with their 
 swords, baggage, horses, and all other property 
 untouched. 
 
 Given by me, for his Royal Highness Arch- 
 duke John, through his orders and direc- 
 tions, at Innspruck, 13th of April, 1809, at 
 half-past 8 in the forenoon. 
 
 (L.S.) Martin Teimer, Major, 
 
 and Authorized Commissary. 
 
 Countersigned. 
 
 Armance, 
 
 BlNDE, 
 
 Varin, 
 
 DoNNERSBERG, 
 
 Bisson, 
 
 Capolle'. 
 
 AlJRBE, 
 
 
 Cap, 
 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 53 
 
 Our admiration of the national character of 
 the Tyrolese will certainly be augmented, when 
 we reflect that so little blood was shed in an in- 
 surrection in which every individual in the 
 country was concerned, the cause and ultimate 
 object of which was to drive from their terri- 
 tories a foe who had treated them with every 
 species of cruelty and oppression. It is scarcely 
 possible to suppose, that, amongst such a mass of 
 irritated people, some instances of individual 
 cruelty would not be found. There were some 
 who undoubtedly had not the due command of 
 their passions, and in a moment of irritation and 
 fury, they were guilty of excesses which did not 
 add to the glory of the cause ; but these in- 
 stances are few. The peasants conducted them- 
 selves generally in a manner equally creditable 
 to their leaders and themselves, their prisoners 
 were treated universally with the greatest hu- 
 manity and kindness, and instead of following 
 the base example of the Bavarians, they seemed 
 eager to show them every attention in, their 
 power. And while the courage and intrepidity 
 of the Tyrolese patriots will be remembered 
 throughout Europe, for years to come, with en- 
 thusiastic admiration, the humanity with which 
 they treated their enemies will be honoured and 
 respected. 
 
 e 3 
 
54 * HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 It was however universally reported, that the 
 Tyrolese had murdered their prisoners in cold 
 blood; and that, on the 13th of April, all the 
 French and Bavarians who had surrendered 
 themselves were massacred at the instigation 
 of Chastelar. 
 
 A calumny so vile and infamous is scarcely 
 worth refutation, but nothing can be easier if it 
 were necessary, than to prove its falsehood ; for 
 the fact is, that on the 13th Chastelar was still 
 at Brixen, and did not arrive at Innspruck until 
 the prisoners had passed Schwaz, on their road 
 to Salzburg, under a female escort, as the men 
 could not be spared to guard them ; and had he 
 been there, Chastelar (who was remarkable for 
 the mildness and attention with which he treated 
 his prisoners) would have shuddered at the idea 
 of such a crime. But it was the object of Na- 
 poleon to efface, if possible, the recollection of 
 his unlucky defeat, by throwing the blame on 
 the conduct of his enemies, and it mattered 
 little to him, how base or infamous the means 
 were to which he resorted, provided they effected 
 his purpose. 
 
 Buonaparte was particularly exasperated 
 against Chastelar, and accusing him of a crime 
 which he had never committed, passed an act of 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 55 
 
 outlawry* against him, as well as Hormayr, by 
 which they were condemned to death; at the 
 same time he issued a proclamation, in which he 
 exhorted the Tyrolese to deliver them up to his 
 mercy ; accusing Chastelar as a traitor for hav- 
 ing taken up arms against his native country, 
 and Hormayr as the author of sedition and 
 instigator of rebellion. Chastelar had once 
 nearly met the fate thus prepared for him. 
 On the 13th, at the battle of Worgl, being 
 very short-sighted, and deceived by the simi- 
 larit}^ of the Bavarian uniform to that of his own 
 suite, he suddenly found himself surrounded by 
 a party of the enemy's dragoons, who immedi- 
 ately took him prisoner, and it was with the 
 utmost difficulty that he was rescued. 
 
 After such proofs of the inveteracy displayed 
 by Napoleon against Chastelar, it will appear 
 extraordinary, that when M. Berthier was at 
 
 * Imperial Head Quarters, Ens, May 5. 
 By orders of the Emperor, the person named Chastelar, styl- 
 ing himself a General in the service of Austria, the mover of 
 the insurrection in the Tyrol, charged with being the author of 
 the massacres committed on the Bavarian and French prisoners 
 by the insurgents, shall, upon being made prisoner, be carried 
 immediately before a military commission, and if judged guilty, 
 be shot within twenty-four hours. 
 
 The Prince of Neufchatel. 
 E4 
 
56 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Vienna, in February, 1810, acting as Envoy to 
 the Court of Austria, he industriously sought 
 every opportunity of complimenting him on his 
 conduct, alluded in the most flattering manner 
 to the Italian campaign of 1799, and treated his 
 having been proscribed as a piece of badinage, 
 an affair not worth remembering. 
 
 The brilliant victories of the Tyrolese on the 
 12th and 13th, and the good fortune that marked 
 the opening of affairs in the Tyrol, did not fail 
 to raise their spirits, and give them the strongest 
 hopes of ultimate success ; while the Bavarians 
 could not but feel in some degree humbled at 
 being thus obliged to acknowledge the supe- 
 riority of a handful of undisciplined and ill 
 armed peasantry. No one perhaps felt more 
 elated than the Emperor of Austria, who could 
 not contemplate without emotion the affection 
 and attachment so strongly shown to him by the 
 Tyrolese, and who saw every probable prospect 
 of reuniting to his dominions a country whose 
 loss he had so deeply felt, and of whose numer- 
 ous advantages he was fully aware. He therefore 
 hastened to signify to them his approbation of 
 their conduct, and to give them encouragement; 
 and to that effect wrote with his own hand the 
 following letter from Scharding, which added, 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 57 
 
 if possible, fresh force to the ardour already 
 manifested amongst them. 
 
 " Mr DEAR AND FAITHFUL TyROLESE, 
 
 " Since the sacrifices which the unfortunate 
 events of the year 1805 compelled me to make, 
 when I was obliged to separate from you (a 
 separation which was so painful to me), my heart 
 has been constantly with you, my honest and 
 affectionate children, and you have always ac- 
 knowledged me as your kind and well-wishing 
 father. 
 
 " As a last proof of my affection, when these 
 circumstances obliged me to part from you, I 
 made a stipulation for the preservation of your 
 constitution ; and it has given me the greatest 
 pain to see this stipulation disregarded, which I 
 had made for your advantage ; but alas ! at that 
 time I was unable to assist you, and could only 
 lament your fate in private. 
 
 " When a new cause obliged me again to draw 
 my sword, my first thought was to become again 
 your father. An army was put in motion to 
 effect your deliverance, but before it could meet 
 our common enemy you had by your gallantry 
 struck a decisive blow, and proved to the whole 
 world as well as to myself, what you are ready 
 to do to become again a part of that kingdom 
 
58 HISTORY OF HOFER, 
 
 under which for centuries past you have lived 
 contented and happy. 
 
 " Your efforts have touched my heart — I 
 know your courage; I am ready to meet all 
 your wishes and to count you amongst the best 
 and most faithful subjects in the Austrian domi- 
 nions. It will be my earnest endeavour to pre- 
 vent our being again separated; millions who 
 were long your brothers, will be eager to draw 
 their swords in the cause. I trust, therefore, in 
 you, and you may rely on me ; so by God's as- 
 sistance, Austria and the Tyrol will again be 
 united as they were for a long series of years. 
 
 " Francis." 
 " Scharding, ISth April, 1800." 
 
 The following answer was returned from the 
 Tyrol : 
 
 " The powers of language are inadequate to 
 express the filial love and gratitude, as well as 
 the enthusiasm produced by your Majesty's most 
 gracious letter, dated Scharding, the 18th April, 
 of this year, in the hearts of your faithful sub- 
 jects, the Tyrolese. 
 
 " Your Majesty assures us of your gracious and 
 powerful protection, and that you will never let 
 us be deprived of the rights and privileges of our 
 ancestors ; to realize which assurance, your faith- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 59 
 
 ful Tyrolese have unanimously sworn to sacrifice 
 all their property and the last drop of their blood. 
 
 " Your Majesty has appointed an army of 
 your own to defend the faithful country of the 
 Tyrol, and has given the command of it to Field 
 Marshal Marquis Chastelar, one of the most 
 prudent, valiant and expert Generals in your 
 service, and our countryman. And your Ma- 
 jesty has placed under him General Buol, a noble 
 worthy man, who exerts himself on all occasions 
 for the welfare of our country. 
 
 " Your Majesty has appointed as your Intend- 
 ant in the Tyrol, our historian and favourite, 
 Baron Hormayr; all of them men of the 
 greatest confidence, and generally esteemed in 
 the country. 
 
 " Your Majesty, at length, in a moment of the 
 most pressing necessity, has most graciously 
 given us pecuniary assistance, and to the sum of 
 200,000 florins has added a supply of ammuni- 
 tion and artillery, which was of the greatest 
 service to us. Gifts whose importance we feel 
 to the fullest extent, but it is beyond our power 
 to give expression to those feelings. 
 
 " How happy we are at knowing that your 
 Majesty is graciously pleased to recollect the 
 ardour of our affection, and the unanimity of 
 our resolution. Certainly the mischances of war 
 
60 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 do not bend the Tyrolese. Supported by your 
 Majesty we will persevere to the last extremity, 
 and convince the whole world, as well as your- 
 self, that it would be easier to extirpate the 
 whole race of the Tyrolese from the face of the 
 earth, than to diminish their affection and at- 
 tachment to your Majesty and the House of 
 Austria. 
 
 " We humbly recommend ourselves and the 
 whole country to your favour and grace. 
 " We are, 
 
 " Most sacred Majesty, 
 
 " Your most submissive and faithful Servants, 
 
 " Four States of the Tyrol." 
 " Innspruck, 1st May, 1809" 
 
 On the 14th April Hormayr was at Botzen, 
 from whence he wrote to General Fenner, whom 
 he urged to join him, that he might cheer the 
 people by his presence, and with the news of the 
 victory at Innspruck. On the 18th, Hofer, with 
 the peasants of the Passeyr valley, and the rest 
 of the men under his command, marched into 
 Botzen. Hormayr met him, attended by his 
 suite, at the Abbey Gries, and conducted him to 
 the town; but the cold and haughty reception 
 of General Marschall piqued the vanity of a 
 man who had been made so much of by Chas- 
 telar and Hormayr, and was probably the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 6\ 
 
 cause of the subsequent misunderstanding be- 
 tween them. 
 
 The troops were immediately put in motion 
 towards Trent and Lavis, in order to spread the 
 insurrection, by assisting the insurgents in that 
 part of the country, arid to enclose the enemy 
 in as small a space as possible. General Lemoine, 
 who had fled from Brixen, immediately retreated 
 into the Ritten Mountains, and soon afterwards 
 joined Baraguay d'Hilliers. The landsturm 
 from Meran and the Vintsghaw advanced on the 
 right side of the Etsch ; and those of Etsch and 
 Fleims to the left over Kaltern and Tramin 
 towards the passes of Rochetta and Bucco di 
 Vela, the possession of which would in a great 
 degree facilitate their operations towards Trent. 
 
 In the mean time Chastelar laboured hard to 
 bring the peasants into some sort of discipline. 
 He organized a corps of cavalry, and distributed 
 arms amongst many who, till then, possessed no 
 better weapons than spears of their own manu- 
 facture ; and while the operations of the army 
 in the south continued to be actively carried on, 
 he dispatched Baron Taxis with a strong corps 
 of Austrians and Tyrolese under his command, 
 to make an incursion in the north, and advancing 
 by Kempten, Kauftbeuern and Augsburg, to 
 pass Wolfertshaufen and alarm Munich. 
 
 The Generals Teimer and Hormayr had pressed 
 
62 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Chastelar repeatedly to attack the army in the 
 South of the Tyrol at once, and, if possible, 
 to drive it entirely out of the country. They 
 now urged it in stronger terms than ever, repre- 
 senting at the same time the dangerous situation 
 of Brixen, and setting forth the consequence of 
 that place to the Tyrolese, till Chastelar listened 
 at length to their entreaties and began his march 
 southward. On the 20th, Lieutenant Colonel 
 Count Leiningen, who had become a great 
 favorite with the Tyrolese, and especially with 
 Hofer, advanced to the very gates of Trent in 
 order to reconnoitre, but was obliged to retreat 
 on being attacked by the enemy, as they were 
 so superior in numbers, but not before he had 
 taken several prisoners in the skirmish. This 
 was the first time the Tyrolese of the South had 
 been engaged. The sharpshooters of Botzen 
 and Schlanders under the Captains Gasser and 
 Frischman distinguished themselves particularly, 
 and took several prisoners ; the whole party 
 were deservedly praised for their gallant conduct 
 in this affair. 
 
 On the 21st, Chastelar received news of the 
 Archduke John's victory at Sacile, and on the 
 same day issued his orders and his plan for the 
 attack of Trent. The commanding officers re- 
 ceived their directions, and Hofer was appointed 
 to the command of the right wing, consisting of 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 63 
 
 the Passeyr and Etschthal peasants. At this 
 moment Hormayr received an express from Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel Goldlin of the Chasseurs, who 
 said that he had possessed himself of the pass of 
 Bucco di Vela ; that the enemy had sprung the 
 bridge of Lavis, and were seen retreating in 
 strong parties over the mountains towards Ro- 
 veredo, and that they had made preparations for 
 destroying the great bridge of Lorenzo upon the 
 Etsch ; circumstances which prove that this hasty 
 retreat was in consequence of the Archduke 
 John's victory. Hofer dispatched letters to the 
 officers under his command, giving them direc- 
 tions how to proceed, and remained himself at 
 head-quarters, where he found better cheer than 
 elsewhere, and therefore preferred it to the hard- 
 ships of a camp ; to which Hormayr, who ex- 
 pected more from his presence and the effect of 
 his name than from his knowledge of military 
 affairs, readily agreed. 
 
 On the 22d, the enemy evacuated Trent with- 
 out firing a shot, and the chief part of their force 
 passed the night at Matarello, only a league dis- 
 tant from it. Hormayr and Teimer entered the 
 town late on the same evening. 
 
 Although the inhabitants of Roveredo were 
 disposed to assist the cause, they objected to the 
 organization of militia in their neighbourhood 
 as well as at Trent, saying, that people who had 
 
64 HISTORY OF IIOFER. 
 
 been accustomed from their infancy to the se- 
 dentary occupation of silk-spinning were unfit 
 for a military life, and unable to bear arms. In 
 the neighbourhood of the Lago di Garda a few 
 companies of volunteers had formed themselves; 
 but these were for the most part deserters from 
 the Italian army, or men who had fled from the 
 conscription, and they committed so many ex- 
 cesses, that Hormayr at length found it necessary 
 partly to mix them with more orderly and disci- 
 plined troops, and partly to disarm them entirely, 
 and to this effect the following proclamation 
 was published : # — 
 
 * " In consequence of the excesses and irregularity of the 
 companies of Italian Sharpshooters, who ramble about in the 
 neighbourhood of the Lago di Garda, and have forced the 
 peaceful inhabitants to take up arms for their own defence, we 
 have issued these orders. Most of the individuals that compose 
 them being foreigners, we cannot expect that they should be 
 attached to the country : it would be therefore advisable to or- 
 ganise some regular Italian sharpshooters immediately, who will 
 not commit the same depredations, but who, by defending the 
 frontiers, may assert their independence and prove their affection 
 for our beloved Prince. We then should hear no more com- 
 plaints on account of the violence and insults offered to the 
 people. 
 
 We therefore order as follows : 
 
 " 1st. That all the wandering companies of Italian Sharp- 
 shooters, viz. those of Meneghelli, Bertelli, Belluti, Collini, 
 Cantonati, Chiesi, and Frizzi, who are now in the neigh- 
 
History of hoker. 6$ 
 
 On Rusca's advance to Trent, the inhabitants* 
 of Sulzberg and Nonsberg were ordered to the 
 
 bourhood of the Lago di Garda and the Lederthal, be 
 dispersed, and that the officers be responsible for their immediate 
 dismission. 
 
 " 2dly. All these officers may, however, be charged with the 
 command of new organized companies. 
 
 " 3dly. That the subaltern officers and privates who are not 
 natives of the country or settled foreigners, do either take u|> 
 arms for our cause, or do show themselves to the magistrate to 
 prove that they are willing to earn their bread, and promise to 
 conduct themselves in an orderly manner -, they must otherwise 
 quit the countiy within eight days. 
 
 " 4thly. If any of these Italian companies are found in the dis" 
 trict of the Etsch, or in any other district, after the publication 
 of the circular, either from the Commander-in-Chief or the In- 
 tendant, they are to be immediately dispersed as is directed in 
 the foregoing paragraphs. 
 
 " 5thly. The public, after this proclamation, are required to 
 assist these companies no longer, but are ordered to use every 
 means in their power, to induce them to espouse the holy cause. 
 
 " Not only the army, but the governors of districts are re- 
 quired to enforce the execution of these orders throughout the 
 Country. 
 
 ie Christian Count Leiningen^ ** Charles Von Menz, 
 
 Lieutenant Colonel and Deputy Intendant 
 
 Commandant in the South TyroL in the Tyrol. 
 
 " Trent, 26th June, 1809." 
 
 * Alexander Standing who possessed most of the property 
 about Sulzberg, a man of great influence in the country, of a 
 good understanding and very zealous in the cause, had distin- 
 guished himself on several occasions at the opening of affairs, 
 
 F 
 
66 HISTORY OF KOFER. 
 
 right wing, in order to cat oft his retreat through 
 the Etschthal. In spite of these precautions, 
 however, he escaped through the Suganthal, 
 where Baron Schmidt had been ordered to take 
 up his position, but unfortunately had not 
 obeyed his orders with sufficient promptitude. 
 
 The peasants of the Suganthal, especially 
 those of the mountainous districts of Castelalto, 
 Ivano and Tesino, (with the exception of Levico 
 and Borgo, who were alarmed at the approach of 
 Rusca) had manifested great ardour in the cause. 
 Those on the south eastern frontier on the ter- 
 ritory of Belluno remained during four weeks 
 
 but on the appearance of Malanotti, suddenly retired. Mala- 
 notti, whose prevailing passion was ambition, had made himselt 
 popular amongst the people by the energetic manner in which 
 he spoke of their prospect of liberty, and by the liberality with 
 which he distributed his money 5 but having once gained a sort 
 of rank amongst the peasants, and fancying himself feared, he 
 assumed a haughtiness and arrogance which the pride of Stan- 
 china could not endure, and he therefore retired to Lavis. — 
 Tactei, from Croviana, who had in the beginning shown equal 
 ardour, and was equally zealous in the cause, was also annoyed 
 at the overbearing manner and folly of Malanotti, and retired in 
 disgust. Malanotti, therefore, with very little talent, and a head 
 too much heated by success to be of any service to him, found 
 himself master of the field 5 but instead of pursuing any settled 
 line of policy, he refused to obey any orders, and determined 
 to act only as might seem best to his own fancy. 
 

 HISTORY OF HOFER. 67 
 
 under arms ; and without the assistance of any re- 
 gular troops, not oniy repulsed a strong force of the 
 enemy, but obliged them entirely to evacuate the 
 districts of Bassano and Belluno. The enthusiasm 
 displayed in these districts was such, that the 
 women took an active part in the hostilities, and 
 aided each other to hurl down stones upon the 
 enemy's troops in the narrow defiles. A girl of 
 eighteen, named Josephine Negretti, assumed 
 the dress of a man, and was several times in ac- 
 tion with the sharpshooters, carrying a rifle and 
 using it with considerable dexterity. Among 
 the natives of this small district, Casimir Bosio 
 and Charles Savoi were particularly distinguished, 
 and were appointed by Hormayr to the rank of 
 majors, as well as the brave Ottavio Bianchi, 
 whom the Archduke John made chief of the 
 Tyrolese Volunteers : he was taken prisoner at 
 Belluno in June, and was shot at Mantua as one 
 of the rebellious chiefs, leaving a wife and a 
 large family of young children to lament his un- 
 timely end. Bianchi died like a hero, exclaim- 
 ing in his last moments " long live the Emperor 
 Francis." 
 
 The Val di Fiemme had been particularly distin- 
 guished at the breaking out of the insurrection : 
 the inhabitants of this valley had been irritated 
 by the conduct of the Bavarian colonel Dittfurt, 
 
 f 2 
 
68 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 who, in attempting to raise recruits, had treated 
 them with the greatest insolence and severity. 
 On the advance of General Rusca, in the begin- 
 ning of May, these peasants joining in the 
 Cembra, the inhabitants of that valley and those 
 of Neumarkt formed the left wing of the land- 
 sturm under the command of Delugan. The 
 small but patriotic town of Salurn raised se- 
 veral companies, who placed themselves under 
 the direction of Joseph Bombardi, who had been 
 one of the deputies sent to the Archduke at 
 Villach. At Neumarkt, the post-master Par- 
 datscher took an active and distinguished part. 
 On the 23d, at noon, Chastelar dispatched a 
 party to reconnoitre the movements of Baraguay 
 d'Hilliers ; but as he was still in motion, it was 
 difficult to say whether he intended to take up 
 his position in the pass of Murazzi, or in the fa- 
 mous post of Calliano. But on the morning 
 of the 24th Chastelar broke up his position, 
 and advanced towards Trent with the Hohen- 
 zollern light horse, the Lusignan, Hohenlohe, 
 and Bartenstein regiments of infantry, and two 
 battalions of Carinthian militia. Lieutenant 
 Colonel Ertel commanded the left wing in the 
 mountains, and General Fenner the right, with 
 Leiningen and Goldlin, while a large body of 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 69 
 
 patriots, commanded by Hofer, were between 
 Trent and Romagnano. 
 
 On the same day the two armies engaged at 
 Volano. It has never been clearly understood 
 why Chastelar, after a hurried and fatiguing 
 march, was tempted to engage with an enemy 
 so superior to him in numbers. However, al- 
 though, Baraguay d'Hiliiers was victorious, he 
 reaped no advantages from his victory. He had 
 already abandoned Trent, and the important com- 
 munication between the Brentathal and Valsa- 
 guna, and he now retreated from the pass of 
 Murazzi immediately after the battle, evacuated 
 Roveredo, and quitted the country entirely. 
 
 Chastelar had scarcely taken up his quarters 
 at Roveredo, when the news reached him of the 
 ill-success at Landshut and Regensberg, and of 
 Jellachich's hasty retreat towards Salzburg. The 
 w T hole of the north of the Tyrol was now ex- 
 posed to the enemy, and the communication 
 with Vienna was in danger of being cut off. In 
 this state of affairs, Chastelar gave up the hopes 
 he had formed of being able to join the Arch- 
 duke John in the Etschthal, and turning his at- 
 tention towards the north, ordered a division of 
 his army to march in that direction, which orders 
 were immediately obeyed, and on the 29th the 
 troops were in motion. 
 
 f 3 
 
70 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Immediately after the battle of Monte Cerrino, 
 the Archduke John began his retreat from Verona, 
 but his troops were incessantly harassed during 
 their march by Beauharnois, who, having strength- 
 ened his cavalry, kept up a continual fight with 
 the Austrians. The Archduke therefore deter- 
 mined to throw himself with the remains of his 
 small army, consisting of fifteen squadrons of 
 cavalry, four battalions of grenadiers, and thir- 
 teen of light infantry, into the Tyrol, and with 
 the assistance of Chastelar, to defend it to the 
 last extremity. General Schmidt commanded 
 the advanced guard during the march. 
 
 Baraguay d'Hilliers and Rusca were in the 
 neighbourhood of Trent, with 15,000 men, and 
 hastened through the Brentathal in order to at- 
 tack the Archduke in his rear, while Beauhar- 
 nois met Schmidt at Bassano. Meanwhile 
 Schmidt, instead of hastening over the moun- 
 tains to join the Tyrolese, where in conjunction 
 with Leiningen he might have harassed the 
 Viceroy, remained till it was too late to effect it; 
 and when the Archduke ordered him to join 
 Chastelar, he found it impossible to obey his 
 orders. 
 
 During the action at Saint Bonifacio (30th 
 April) the Archduke wrote the following note 
 in pencil on his knee. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 71 
 
 " This is a new method of writing letters, but 
 the enemy keep up a brisk cannonade, and I 
 have no other paper. Veyder will tell you him- 
 self what I have not time to write. The enemy 
 are aware of their successes in Germany, and 
 they hoped to have the same here, but to day 
 we have beaten them. They attack us while it 
 is of the greatest importance to me to keep clear 
 of them. Give my compliments to Hormayr, 
 and tell him, that I hope soon to see him in his 
 own country. Do not allow the misfortunes 
 which have befallen us in Germany to make you 
 uneasy: we have done our duty, and we will 
 defend the Tyrol, Stiria, Carinthia, Carniola and 
 Salzburg, to the last drop of our blood. It is in 
 this fortress, aided by our brave mountaineers, 
 that we ought to conquer or to die for the glory 
 of our ancestors and our arms. I shall not re- 
 tire to Hungary — Adieu. 
 
 "John." 
 " 30th April, 1809.*' 
 
 On the 3d of May the Archduke sent the fol- 
 lowing letters from Montechio Maggiore : — 
 
 1. To Hormayr. 
 
 " Our ill fortune in Germany has forced me 
 to cease acting on the offensive, and to direct 
 
 f 4 
 
73 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 my attention to the safety of those provinces 
 which are of so much consequence to Austria. 
 But I shall endeavour in my retreat to take every 
 possibility of annoying the enemy. Do not be 
 alarmed ; the Tyrol shall never be forsaken. I 
 have commanded a brigade to march there in 
 order to reinforce Field Marshal Chastelar; I 
 will defend the Tyrol and the interior of Austria 
 to the last extremity, and I believe I shall benefit 
 the state much and annoy the enemy more by 
 marching to Comorn. 
 
 " Activity shall not be wanting on our part. 
 Perhaps we trifle with fortune, but we may yet 
 render our country a real service. It will be 
 advisable to make this generally known in the 
 country. We will hope for the best — the wind 
 does not always blow in the same quarter, and 
 you I know will not fail us. 
 
 " Archduke John." 
 
 2. To Chastelar. 
 
 " I send you General Schmidt with a brigade 
 of infantry, 4 squadrons of Hohenzollern horse, 
 and a brigade of artillery. He advances over 
 Bassano through Valsugana to Trent or Lavis ; 
 you will send him word where to meet you that 
 he may know how to act. I am beginning to 
 retreat slowly. You will send me word of every 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 73 
 
 thing that happens to you, and in return you 
 shall hear of my movements. Should I retreat 
 as far as Piava, or even further towards Ca- 
 rinthia, I shall take care to make such disposi- 
 tions at the entrances of Krauzburg and Cadore 
 as shall ensure the communication with the 
 Pusterthal. I am writing to Field Marshal Jel- 
 lachich to command him to defend the moun- 
 tains of the Emsthal ; I beg, therefore, that you 
 will acquaint me with all his proceedings. You 
 will march home 2 battalions of the Judenburg 
 and two of the Bruck militia, as they are pro- 
 bably wanted to protect their flocks. We have 
 not many troops, but I hope sufficient to defend 
 our mountains; at all events, I will leave you 
 the troops you already have with you in the 
 Tyrol, and the brigade you expect. F. M. Jel- 
 lachich will defend the mountains of Salzburg 
 and the pass of Steyermarck with the militia 
 of that place and that of the neighbourhood of 
 the Ems. He will also send F. M. Guilay 
 Banus, to Krain, who with the insurgent Kroats 
 and the militia of Krain may defend the Isonzo, 
 cover Trieste and enable General Stoichevich to 
 march into Dalmatia. A small force, composed of 
 Carinthian and Pusterthal militia, will secure the 
 passes between Italy and the Tyrol. I myself, 
 with my small army, will be every where, where 
 
74 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 danger threatens. — This is my plan in a few 
 words. The recruiting will continue in Inner 
 Austria, and I shall take care to make such 
 dispositions that neither provisions nor ammuni- 
 tion may fail us in the Tyrol. 
 
 " Archduke John." 
 
 Lieutenant Colonel Count Leiningen re- 
 mained alone with his detachment in the Italian 
 Tyrol— he was attacked near Roveredo and 
 obliged to yield to a superiority of numbers and 
 retire; General Marschall retreated to Botzen. 
 On the 2d of May Trent was retaken by Ge- 
 neral Rusca : but he did not remain there long. 
 The sub-intendant Menz summoned in haste 
 the landsturm, while Leiningen kept his posi- 
 tion courageously at Lavis. Rusca, thus finding 
 himself surrounded by a formidable body of 
 armed peasants, did not wait for their attack, 
 but made a hasty retreat through Valsaguna to 
 Bassano, where it was probable that he would 
 have fallen in with Schmidt. 
 
 At this moment Hofer at the head of a large 
 body of peasants joined Leiningen, and although 
 no action had yet taken place, their union was 
 hailed by the people as the most favourable 
 omen. This probably was increased by the 
 universal dislike evinced for General Marschall, 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 75 
 
 whose hasty retreat was looked upon by the 
 peasants as a proof of cowardice and want of 
 ardour, though in reality it had been ordered by 
 Chastelar. — Marschall was a man of considera- 
 ble talent, and an officer who had, perhaps, more 
 knowledge in military matters than any one 
 engaged in the cause, nor was he at all deficient 
 in personal courage ; but he was never a favourite 
 amongst the Tyrolese nor even his own soldiers. 
 - — He was haughty and distant in his manners 
 to them, and had a notion that no man who had 
 not already distinguished himself as a soldier, 
 was fit to command, and he was, therefore, very 
 unwilling to act in concert with any of the 
 chiefs of the undisciplined insurgents ; he even 
 carried his ill-timed haughtiness so far as to 
 object to dine at the same table with their 
 favourite Hofer. — This refusal, as might have 
 been expected, was instantly and warmly re- 
 sented, and a deputation was sent to the Arch- 
 duke to complain of his conduct. The conse- 
 quence was that Marschall was removed from 
 his command, and Count Leiningen was ap- 
 pointed to succeed him ; — Hofer, at the same 
 time, was directed to act under him without 
 restraint. 
 
 Leiningen was the idol of the common peo- 
 ple—without any brilliant talents, an exterior 
 
76 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 in no way remarkable, and manners that did not 
 appear at all calculated to please or attract, he 
 was always surrounded by crowds when he 
 spoke in public ; and the peasants seemed eager 
 to follow wherever he led them — heedless of 
 danger, provided he was with them. He re- 
 mained commandant in the south of the Tyrol 
 until the final evacuation of that loyal and un- 
 fortunate country. 
 
 Jellachich had been ordered to defend Rad- 
 stadt and Werfen, and the important passes of 
 Steyermark and Lueg; — Chastelar, therefore, 
 hearing that the enemy had been driven back 
 from Lueg in their attempt to force that pass, 
 hoped that the capture of Kufstein would follow, 
 and relied on Jellachich, not only for the defence 
 of Salzburg, but for an active assistance in the 
 north of the Tyrol. — Jellachich, however, in- 
 stead of realizing these hopes remained inactive, 
 and manifested throughout the meanest jealousy 
 of Chastelar. 
 
 On the 4th of May a proclamation was issued 
 at Innspruck addressed to the inhabitants of the 
 Salzburg mountains, in order to rouse them to 
 activity. 
 
 " Honest and faithful inhabitants of the 
 Salzburg mountains ! — The enemy with all their 
 powers have gained an advantage over a single 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 77 
 
 corps of the German army, and now beset the 
 capital of your country. 
 
 " This important place must be again set free 
 in a few days, and the communication with 
 Austria again opened, by those brave troops who 
 under my command have cleared in fifteen days 
 the whole country from Lienz to Innspruck and 
 from Innspruck to Peri ; who have given way 
 neither to fatigue nor danger, and who in reli- 
 gion, proximity of country, and valour, are bro- 
 thers to the Tyrolese. 
 
 " You have felt the mild sway of our beloved 
 Emperor's sceptre — you have learnt how strongly 
 fortified you are by your mountains, and you 
 are equally interested in the cause of liberty. 
 
 " Rouse yourselves, then. — Let the brave 
 Pinzgauer hasten towards Taxenbach, Luften- 
 stein and Schneiselreit ; — Pongauer to Werfen 
 and Lueg ; — and you, brave Eilerthaler and 
 Brixenthaler, prove, as you did on the heights 
 of Rattenberg, and on the bridge of Rotholtz, 
 now, on the scenes of the defeats of the Bava- 
 rians, that you are indeed brothers of the Tyro- 
 lese. 
 
 " He who yet hesitates is an enemy to his 
 country, and whoever opposes the insurrection, 
 either by word or by deed, will be given up to 
 the just fury of the people. 
 
78 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 " We shall expect a deputation from you — 
 we are ready to do any thing for your encou- 
 ragement, and we shall see what will be the 
 effect of your courage. 
 
 " Marquis Chastelar, &c. &c. 
 
 " Joseph baron hormayr, &c. &c." 
 
 " Innspruck, 4th May, 1809." 
 
 By the junction of the Salzburgers, the right 
 flank of the Tyrolese, as well as the sources of 
 the Ens and the Muhr, were protected, the 
 interior of Austria rendered secure, and the com- 
 munication preserved. — This part of the army 
 was to act entirely on the defensive, while the 
 other was to carry on the war with as much 
 activity as possible. It was of the greatest 
 importance to secure an undisturbed possession 
 of the Vorarlberg ; — because it opened a com- 
 munication with Switzerland, and kept the 
 whole of the west of the Tyrol, from Veltlin to 
 Kempten, free from attack — while it rendered 
 the importation of corn from Swabia by the 
 lake of Constance more easy, in spite of the 
 menaces of Tally rand and the intrigues of the 
 French in the Swiss Cantons of St. Gallen and 
 Thurgau. 
 
 The intelligence from Salzburg was far from 
 cheering. The Bavarian army under the com- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 79 
 
 mand of the Duke of Dantzig (Lefevre) was 
 advancing rapidly towards Lienz, and the spirits 
 of the patriots, particularly at Innspruck, were 
 much damped, as if they already prognosticated 
 a change of affairs in favour of the enemy. 
 
 On the 1 1 th of May, the enemy made an 
 attempt to relieve Kufstein, and after a well 
 contested conflict, supported by only two com- 
 panies of regular militia and four of sharp- 
 shooters against the whole of Lieutenant Ge- 
 neral Wrede's division, the Tyrolese were obliged 
 to abandon the pass of Strub. — It happened to 
 be Ascension Day, and the peasants were partly 
 at church, and partly taking advantage of the 
 holiday to enjoy themselves, and it is probable 
 that the enemy had been aware of this, and had 
 purposely chosen that day for their attack. The 
 commandant of Strub, Stainer of Waidring, was 
 absent, and it was some time before he could be 
 found to head his troops — while General Wrecle 
 was expecting hourly to be joined by the Crown 
 Prince and Lieutenant General Deroy, 
 
 The battle of Worgl (13th May) was fought 
 under equal disadvantages, the force of the 
 enemy being much superior. — In this action the 
 Austrians lost all their ammunition, baggage, 
 &c. and the principal officers very narrowly 
 escaped being made prisoners — yet the Bava- 
 
80 HISTORY OF HOFER, 
 
 rians did not take all the advantage they might 
 of their victory ; had they pushed on to Halle 
 and Innspruck the same night, they might have 
 prevented the junction of the Tyrolese forces, 
 and neither Chastelar nor Hormayr could have 
 escaped. — For some days previous to the action, 
 a considerable part of the Austrians had been 
 dispersed about the country, so that the whole 
 force on their side consisted of 3000 men, 900 
 only of which were troops of the line, the rest 
 being composed of Carinthian militia who had 
 never been in action, with only six guns and 
 seventy of the Hohenzollern light horse ;* while 
 the Bavarian force consisted of 18,000 regular 
 troops, 1700 horse and above thirty guns. The 
 peasants did not take much part in the action, 
 and showed themselves only occasionally in 
 scattered parties in the mountains, keeping up, 
 from time to time, an irregular and ill-directed 
 fire which was of no service. 
 
 Hormayr had marched early on the same 
 morning, by Chastelar's desire, to meet the 
 column of Baron Buol which was advancing by 
 Scharnitz, and it was not till late in the evening 
 that the intelligence of the defeat at the pass of 
 
 * The French, in their account of the battle, say, that they 
 took 700 prisoners and eleven guns. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 83 
 
 Strub reached him at Bavarian Mittewald ; — he 
 hurried back to Innspruck the same night, and 
 arrived there just as the defeated Austrians were 
 flying towards that city. — Chastelar imme- 
 diately joined him, concerted plans for future 
 operations, and in twenty- four hours his orders 
 were executed. — Lieutenant Colonel Ertel took 
 up an important position on the Brenner, while 
 General Marschall put himself at the head of 
 the reserve at Brixen. 
 
 On the night of the 15th, Hormayr advanced 
 over the Brenner with the Rodenecker land- 
 sturm to Steinach, where he again joined Chas- 
 telar, whom he found seriously ill from the 
 effects of several severe wounds, as well as from 
 mixed feelings of indignation and grief which 
 he felt at the indecent treatment he had met 
 with at Halle, on the night of his retreat, when 
 a party of drunken peasants attempted to drag 
 him from his horse. # 
 
 * " The rage of the Tyrolese against Chastelar was so great, 
 that, when after the affair at Wbrgl, he took refuge at Halle, 
 they attacked him with cudgels, and gave him such a drubbing, 
 that he kept his bed for two days and durst not venture to 
 make his appearance, except to request a capitulation : he was 
 told, however, that no capitulation would be granted to a high- 
 way robber, upon which he fled towards the mountains of 
 Carinthia." — French papers. 
 
 G 
 
84 HISTORY OF JHOFER. 
 
 The Tyrol had begun again to be visited by 
 misfortunes, and the brilliant success with which 
 the insurrection had commenced was not of long 
 duration. Chastelar who had been the great 
 author and conductor of every plan, was so 
 much vexed at his treatment, that the ardour 
 which he had displayed in the cause evidently 
 relaxed ; and the Austrians were, in general, 
 hurt (and with justice) at the conduct of the 
 Tyrolese, who had abandoned them in the heat 
 of action, deserting their own cause, and giving 
 up their protectors to the fury of their enemies. 
 
 The Bavarians, on the other hand, gained 
 daily some new advantage, and every town and 
 village through which they passed, bore marks 
 of some outrageous excess of cruelty too horrible 
 to relate.* They spared neither the aged nor 
 
 * The German author enters into a minute and circum- 
 stantial description of these cruelties, but I have purposely 
 omitted them. A reader of sensibility is only disgusted by such 
 horrors, and the information conveyed to him does not com- 
 pensate for the pain which the recital excites. 
 
 Among other places the town of Schwarz was destroyed ; the 
 Tyrolese say, that the Bavarians wantonly set fire to it, and as- 
 sisted and encouraged the fury of the flames till eveiy house was 
 demolished. The Bavarians, however, give a different account. 
 
 " When the Van approached the town of Schwarz, an Aus- 
 trian battalion, some cavalry, some battalions of the-Landwehr, 
 and some rebels, were perceived advancing. Baron Wrede in- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 85 
 
 the helpless; old men, women, and children, 
 were alike objects of their insatiable rage ; and 
 
 stantly caused the artillery to be brought up, in order to turn 
 them back ; but they threw themselves into the town, and it 
 was easy to perceive that they (the Austrians) had formed the 
 desperate resolution of defending it. As the ground was favour- 
 able, Baron Wrede himself led on the Leiningen regiment of 
 light infantry to the attack of the Austrian battalion ; that was 
 routed, and great numbers of them put to the sword or taken 
 prisoners. A part of the Austrians, with the rebels, threw them- 
 selves into the town, while another part attempted to destroy 
 the bridge, but they were prevented by the Kasper's battery. 
 The carabineers of the 1st brigade having made themselves 
 masters of the suburbs, a battalion of the 3d Regiment of Duke 
 Charles entered to take the town by storm. Baron Wrede 
 penetrated twice into the town, but was forced twice to retreat 
 to the principal church, as the Austrians and rebels fired from 
 the houses upon the Bavarians. At length the 13th Regiment 
 of infantry stormed the place. All who were in the streets 
 or houses were put to the sword or taken prisoners. Among 
 the latter, were three captains and 182 soldiers of the Austrian 
 regiment Devaux. The slaughter was dreadful, and the courage 
 of our troops incomparable ! 
 
 " Scarcely were our troops in bivouac, when the two suburbs 
 were set on fire by the howitzer grenades which had been 
 thrown in, and in half an hour they were in flames. The inha- 
 bitants having fled, the Lieutenant General sent part of two 
 regiments to extinguish the flames ; there being no engines or 
 vessels of any kind at hand to convey water for that purpose, 
 they did not succeed till the following day, and then not without 
 great trouble and difficulty. In the evening, at eight o'clock, a 
 high wind arose, which blew the sparks upon the roofs of the 
 
 G 2 
 
86 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Bavaria will ever have cause to blush at the 
 recollection of crimes which will be a deep 
 stain upon her name and her honour. If these 
 cruelties were exercised from policy, it was a 
 very mistaken policy, for they were not calcu- 
 lated to subdue the popular feeling in the Tyrol ; 
 and although in many places the Bavarians 
 had spread terror on their approach, their con- 
 duct rather served to irritate than to terrify the 
 peasants, and excited them to carry on the war, 
 if not with the same ardour, yet with a sort of 
 desperate desire of vengeance which was equally 
 terrible to their enemies. 
 
 The military operations in the Tyrol pro- 
 ceeded however, with much less alacrity. In 
 Innspruck there was a difference of opinion; 
 the citizens being awed by the success of the 
 Bavarians were anxious to submit, while the 
 peasants were strenuous for a continuance of 
 hostilities, and declared their determination of 
 fighting to the last extremity. On the 17th of 
 May a council of war was held on the Brenner 
 to deliberate upon the future operations of the 
 army, but in the mean time Chastelar arrived 
 
 houses which had hitherto escaped. The remainder of the town 
 caught fire, there was nothing to oppose the flames ; and this 
 town once so flourishing has been converted into a heap of 
 ashes and ruins." — Bavarian Papers, May 20. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 87 
 
 at Sterzing to join the Archduke with all the 
 troops under his command, as he was deter- 
 mined, though inferior in strength, to dispute 
 the ground with the enemy step by step. He, 
 therefore, immediately commanded a retreat 
 from the Brenner, and advanced without delay 
 to Mulhbach, and, on the following day, to 
 Brunecken. At Mittewald he was overtaken 
 by Teimer, who had previously communicated 
 with the Bavarians, and who now urged him in 
 the most earnest manner not to abandon them, 
 but to complete the promises of assistance he 
 had so frequently given them to terminate a war 
 which had been so gloriously begun. He urged 
 strongly the dislike which the Bavarians evi- 
 dently felt to the continuation of a war with an 
 irritated peasantry, carried on with so much 
 irregularity and detriment to themselves. He 
 pleaded their excuses for the unpardonable 
 cruelties committed by the soldiery, and stated 
 that they were prepared to negociate amicably 
 and evacuate the country. Chastelar listened 
 to his persuasions, and at length dispatched 
 him with Baron Beyder to endeavour to nego- 
 ciate a treaty, which it is probable the Bavarians 
 never intended to open, and which they cer- 
 tainly never did negociate. 
 
 During four-and-twenty hours the enemy in 
 g 3 
 
88 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 the Lower Innthal had remained quiet. But 
 "Wrede had received intelligence of the discord 
 prevailing at Innspruck and Halle, and deter- 
 mining not to lose so favourable an opportunity 
 of striking a blow, advanced up the left shore 
 of the Inn with so much rapidity, that on the 
 arrival of Beyder and Teimer, they found him 
 already on the plains of Bompar. He treated 
 them with great contempt, and giving back to 
 the former Chastelar's dispatch unopened, pre- 
 sented him, at the same time, with the act of out- 
 lawry issued against him by Napoleon ; adding, 
 that if he ever fell into his hands, he should suffer 
 immediate death. Teimer, to whom he had a few 
 days before offered the rank of Major in his army, 
 on condition that he would attempt to appease 
 the irritation of the peasantry, he now treated 
 with peculiar insolence, and threatened more 
 than once during the interview to make him pri- 
 soner, although he came under a flag of truce. 
 They returned therefore, burning with indigna- 
 tion, to Chastelar, who was still at Brunecken, 
 where he afterwards received orders from the 
 Archduke to remain in the Tyrol, and to defend 
 it to the last. 
 
 Chastelar, therefore, once more turned all 
 his thoughts to the assistance of the Tyrolese. 
 He hastened from Brunecken back to Muhl- 
 
HISTORY OF IIOFER. S<) 
 
 bach, summoned the landsturm, and ordered 
 the position on the Brenner to be again taken 
 up. Hormayr and Teimer, at the same time, 
 formed a plan of passing through Etschland 
 and the Vintsghaw to the Upper Innthal, from 
 whence they might reach the capital, and 
 either dislodge the enemy from their present 
 position, or at least oblige them to divide their 
 force, by which means they would be more ex- 
 posed to the irregular warfare of the moun- 
 taineers. 
 
 The head-quarters of Chastelar were, in the 
 mean time, a scene of constant dispute; Hor- 
 mayr and Beyder being of opinion that the 
 Tyrol ought on no account to be abandoned, 
 but, on the contrary, to be defended to the last 
 extremity ; while General Marschall and Major 
 Lebzeltern were only anxious to leave a country 
 which was disagreeable to them, and where they 
 were universally disliked. These disputes natu- 
 rally gave rise to so many contradictory orders, 
 that the troops were unable to comprehend 
 them, and General Buol, who commanded the 
 advanced guard, was frequently at a loss where 
 to march his men. On the 15th of May he 
 received orders to remain stationary with his 
 division on the Brenner ; but on the same day, 
 in the afternoon, he was ordered to advance 
 
 g4 
 
90 HISTORY OF IIOFEH. 
 
 immediately to Innspruck; on the 16th, early 
 in the morning, he was ordered to retreat over 
 the Ellenbogen to the Brenner, but to defend 
 the castle of Friedberg to the last; during the 
 day he was commanded to march from Inn- 
 spruck to Steinach, and in the evening was 
 ordered to remain at Innspruck. Thus the 
 General was kept in a constant state of doubt 
 and uncertainty; so that while his troops were 
 harassed by daily marches and countermarches 
 he was at a loss how to proceed, and unable to 
 act on the offensive. — To these contradictory 
 orders which continued to be issued during 
 several days, we add an extract of a letter from 
 General Marschall to Buol, dated Laditscher 
 Bridge, 21st of May. 
 
 " It is your desire to know the situation of 
 Field Marshal Chastelar. Circumstances and 
 his increased indisposition induced him to de- 
 part an hour ago from Muhlbach to Lienz. — 
 Before his departure he wrote an order con- 
 signing to you the command of all the troops in 
 the Tyrol, and he gave me to understand that 
 he had done so. The Field Marshal found it 
 necessary, however, to command Colonel Volk- 
 man to march with two battalions of Johann 
 Jellachich, four companies of 2d Banal, and four 
 3-pounders to Lienz, with which he hopes to be 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEft. 91 
 
 able to reach the narrow passes, and to make an 
 opening for this corps as well as for himself. 
 
 " I am still ignorant of the state of affairs at 
 Saxenburg and Griefenburg, but I conceive that 
 this evening General Schmidt will be officially 
 informed of it. It is, however, certain that a 
 battalion which was ordered to march from the 
 Gailthal to Saxenburg has not reached it, and 
 that the bridge of Saxenburg has been carried. 
 The enemy is at Spital with 2000 men, and 
 Field Marshal Jellachich has joined the army 
 of the Archduke." 
 
 In the mean time Chastelar was retreating 
 towards Lienz with the intention of leaving the 
 country ; and it was reported by the Bavarians 
 and French, that the Austrians had abandoned 
 the Tyrol, and that the insurrection was com- 
 pletely subdued. Many of the peasants de- 
 ceived by these reports retired to their homes, 
 giving up a cause which they considered as 
 hopeless, while others more courageous, and, 
 perhaps, more averse from the Bavarian govern- 
 ment, were still determined to resist all attempts 
 to subdue them. Amongst these Hofer bore a 
 conspicuous part ; Chastelar had presented him 
 with a handsome sword and a pair of pistols as 
 a reward for his conduct, and proud of what he 
 considered so great a mark of distinction, he ap- 
 
92 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 peared at the head of the Passeyrthal peasants, 
 who had already distinguished themselves on 
 several occasions, and who now proved true to 
 a cause which had been abandoned by so many 
 of their countrymen. 
 
 Hormayr and Teimer, who were determined 
 to pursue to the utmost the plan they had 
 formed for the deliverance of their country, in- 
 creased their activity ; and although affairs did 
 not wear so favourable an appearance as formerly, 
 they put themselves at the head of their men, 
 and prepared to make a desperate effort to re- 
 gain their liberty. Meanw r hile it was reported 
 that the enemy had again taken possession of 
 the Brenner, and Leiningen was ordered to 
 march without delay to the heights of Schabs, 
 and, if possible, to join Chastelar. The unfor- 
 tunate affair at Worgl which had been the first 
 cause of the retreat of the Austrians, and the 
 loss of Innspruck, by which it was imme- 
 diately followed ; had an evident effect on the 
 minds of the peasantry, and while Hormayr was 
 exerting himself to rouse them again to that 
 state of enthusiasm from which they had fallen, 
 the extraordinary conduct of Lebzeltern and the 
 backwardness of Leiningen convinced them that 
 their cause was abandoned by the Austrians. 
 As Hormayr approached the Innthal he found 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEK. 93 
 
 the people every where shy of joining him, and 
 at every step he had some new difficulty to con- 
 tend with. The militia called aloud for their 
 arrears of pay, while others said they would not 
 fight for a government which had so basely 
 deserted them. An obscure individual, Rung- 
 ger of Nauders, added fuel to this spirit of dis- 
 affection by encouraging and assisting the dis- 
 tribution of Bavarian proclamations, and by 
 using every means in his power to render Hor- 
 mayr unpopular. This treachery, however, did 
 not escape notice; Hormayr ordered the man 
 to be apprehended ; but he made his escape, 
 and concealed himself at St. Maria in the Mun- 
 sterthal in the dress of a peasant, where, how- 
 ever, he was afterwards discovered and deli- 
 vered up to Hormayr at Meran. 
 
 General Buol still continued on the Brenner 
 in a wretched state, being totally destitute of 
 money and ammunition. Hormayr in the 
 mean time was actively employed in keeping 
 up a communication with Switzerland, from 
 whence he received through the mountains, 
 under various pretences, supplies of provisions, 
 arms, ammunition, &c. notwithstanding the 
 avowed neutrality of the Swiss. Veltlin had 
 been a scene of continual disturbance, and al- 
 though General Polfrancheschi contrived to 
 
94 HISTORY OF HOFEK. 
 
 keep the cities on the plains in subjection, the 
 mountains were occupied by the insurgents, who 
 on the 2 1 st of May delivered at Tirano, a body 
 of 500 conscripts, and 200 peasants, that had 
 been taken prisoners; the Tyrol had nothing 
 therefore to fear in that quarter. 
 
 The constant fatigue and exertion to which 
 Hormayr was necessarily exposed, combined 
 with the anxiety which preyed upon his mind, 
 brought on a low fever, and he was for some 
 time wholly unfit for active service. In the 
 midst of his sufferings, however, he never for a 
 moment lost sight of the cause which was so 
 dear to him ; and by his exertion Innspruck was 
 once more relieved from the enemy, and for a 
 time affairs wore a brighter aspect. Teimer had 
 advanced by Zirl and Martinswand straight to 
 the Bavarian line, and was joined by Mahr- 
 berger, with the landsturm of Imst, Peters- 
 berg and Hortenberg, with whose assistance he 
 intended to cut off the nearest communications 
 with Munich by seizing the important posi- 
 tions of Scharnitz and Laitasch. 
 
 The inhabitants of Imst had refused to send 
 any assistance to Hormayr, alleging that since 
 their cause had been deserted by the Austrians, 
 they would not continue to exert themselves, as 
 they saw they could derive no advantage from 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 05 
 
 it; but on the advance of Teimer, several of the 
 principal citizens joined him, among whom were 
 the Burgomasters Strele and Stecher, with three 
 companies, declaring that they were resolved to 
 share his fate whatever might be the result of 
 his efforts. In Reutti the peasants were still less 
 inclined to continue the war, and had not only 
 openly submitted to Bavaria, but had possessed 
 themselves of the booty taken by Teimer in 
 Swabia, that they might have something to pro- 
 duce when the Bavarians should demand repara- 
 tion for the losses they had sustained. 
 
 This disaffection to the cause was not, how- 
 ever, general ; seven companies from Landeck, 
 and two from Nauders, joined Hormayr; and 
 the people of Lechthal and Aschau, forced the 
 citizens to take up arms, so that 3% companies 
 in a short time occupied the important positions 
 of Roschlag Gacht, Operpinzwang, &c. 
 
 From the 13th to the 19th of May the Ba- 
 varians had remained almost inactive, and did 
 not take advantage either of the victory gained 
 at Worgl, of the subsequent disaffection of the 
 peasantry, or of their advantageous positions. 
 This inactivity may perhaps have been owing to 
 the interruption of their regular communications 
 by the incessant and active vigilance of the steady 
 part of the Tyrolese peasantry, who, in the con- 
 
96 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 stant apprehension of treachery, destroyed every 
 paper that fell into their hands, whether they 
 understood it or not ; the consequence of which 
 was, that several of the Bavarian dispatches, 
 and some of considerable importance, never ar- 
 rived at the place of their destination. On the 
 19th, however, in the evening, they advanced 
 to Innspruck. From an intercepted dispatch it 
 appeared that the Duke of Dantzig, on learning 
 that Chastelar had resolved to abandon the 
 Brenner, and to join the Archduke through the 
 Pusterthal, had determined to force the two 
 central positions on the heights of the Brenner 
 and Schabs, to endeavour to open a communica- 
 tion with Italy through Botzen and Trent, and 
 at the same time to pursue Chastelar through 
 the Pusterthal. It appeared also that he had 
 received a courier from Eugene Beauharnois, 
 informing him that the Archduke would be 
 obliged to abandon his position at Villach, but 
 that Jellachich had retreated in order to join 
 him. The duke therefore determined that the 
 division of Deroy should pursue Chastelar, while 
 he himself marched with two divisions through 
 Salzburg to Upper Carinthia, where he would 
 be able to prevent Jellachich's advance, or, at all 
 events, to place the Archduke with his small army 
 between himself and the Viceroy. On the 23d 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 97 
 
 of May he begun his march from Innspruck, 
 but on the morning of the 25th he met a courier 
 ordering him to proceed immediately towards 
 Lienz. 
 
 The state of affairs in the Tyrol on the 25th 
 was as follows : The Etschthal was undisturbed 
 by the enemy. Count Leiningen retained his 
 position at Trent and had begun to fortify Cas- 
 tella. Veltlin and the neutral ground of Swit- 
 zerland covered the whole of the western frontier. 
 The Vorarlbergers, by the reported capitulation 
 of the Tyrolese, had laid down their arms and 
 dispersed themselves. Bregenz and the country 
 as far as Hohenems was occupied by a strong- 
 body of Wurtembergers unde^ the command of 
 Generals Scholer and Roseris, and a division of 
 French under Colonel Grouvelle. In Pludenz, 
 Feldkirk, and the mountainous districts, the pea- 
 sants were still under arms, and continued to 
 defend themselves with great perseverance, al- 
 though all the regular troops, except one com- 
 pany and a six-pounder, with Lieutenant Colonel 
 Baron Haagen had deserted them. Reitti and 
 Ehrwald were not much disturbed. The shortest 
 and best road from Innspruck to Munich, by 
 Scharnitz and the Iserthal, was occupied by the 
 division of Count Max Arco, who, with the as- 
 
98 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 sistance of General Deroy, kept up the com- 
 munication with Innspruck. The patroles at 
 Zirl, and on the heights near Seafeld were de- 
 stroyed. The insurgents of the Upper Vintsghaw 
 and Upper Inn thai, under the command of 
 Teimer, were separated into two divisions ; that 
 on the left, commanded by Mahrberger, was to 
 retake from the enemy the passes of Scharnitz 
 and Laitasch ; while the main body, headed by 
 Teimer in person, extending from Zirl over the 
 heights of Hotting to the Castle of Thauer in 
 the rear of the enemy, was to destroy the bridges 
 of the Inn and the Sill, and to give again the 
 signal for insurrection in the Lower Innthal, 
 which had been for a time quiet; but Speck- 
 bacher had been active in urging the people not 
 to abandon the cause, and they were ready to rise 
 again at a moment's warning. 
 
 General Buol remained on the Brenner w r ith 
 2,300 men, 70 horse and six guns, but without 
 ammunition. With the exception of Lein- 
 ingen's divisions, the whole of Chastelar's corps 
 was in the Drauthal, towards Lienz, partly on the 
 frontiers of the Tyrol, and partly entering Ca- 
 rinthia. He had relieved Clagenfurt from Ge- 
 neral Rusca, and attacked Saxenburg ; his plan 
 was to break through the rear of the enemy by 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 97 
 
 Spital, and combining his force with Jellachich, 
 to join the Archduke, who was in ambush at 
 Gratz. 
 
 The plan of the Archduke was to collect as 
 strong a force as possible in the neighbourhood 
 of Gratz, to begin his operations by attacking 
 Macdonald, and if successful in this attack, then, 
 to act on the offensive with Marmont, Broussier, 
 and Rusca in succession, and thus to prevent 
 their joining the main army, while at the same 
 time he could keep the communication open 
 with the interior of Austria, and the passage to 
 the Tyrol through the Drauthal free ; but un- 
 fortunately he was unable to execute a plan 
 which had been so ably devised. Jellachich, who 
 was advancing to join him, was attacked and 
 defeated at St. Michael on the. 29th May with 
 great slaughter, losing above 100 officers, and 
 64<76 privates; he passed through Lerben and 
 Bruck the day after the battle with scarcely 
 3000 men. 
 
 Hofer in the mean time carried on the war in 
 the Tyrol with unabated activity, and the spirit 
 of the patriots seemed to have gained additional 
 strength from their misfortunes. Hormayr had 
 sent to Hofer a young man who had served in 
 the Italian Chasseurs, named Joseph Eisen^ 
 
 H 
 
98 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 stecken to act as his Adjutant. Eisenstecken was 
 of a bold and enterprizing character, but of a 
 passionate temper, and in general too hasty and 
 thoughtless in his decision upon subjects that 
 required cool and mature consideration. He 
 was at the same time joined by two Capuchin 
 Friars, Father Joachim Haspinger and Father 
 Peter, they were both young and athletic, and 
 although they never carried arms, were al^ 
 ways seen in the thickest of the fight, dealing 
 tremendous blows on the heads of their adver- 
 saries, with stout wooden crucifixes, with which 
 they did considerable execution. They also 
 busied themselves in making amulets, or charms, 
 which were to render the wearer invulnerable, 
 but these lost much of their effect when several 
 hundred of the peasants had been killed who 
 were known to have worn them. 
 
 Eisenstecken, in spite of his impetuosity, was 
 of the greatest service to the patriotic cause ; 
 being enthusiastic in the extreme, and never 
 relinquishing an object which he thought might 
 contribute to the welfare of his country, or the 
 cause in which he was engaged, he used every 
 means in his power to dissuade the Austrians 
 from abandoning the Tyrol ; he had twice inter- 
 cepted the order for General Buol to leave the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 99 
 
 Brenner, and when at length the Austrian troops 
 began to move, he threw himself on his knees 
 before them, and conjured them in the most pa- 
 thetic manner to recollect their desperate situa- 
 tion ; to remember that it was for Austria they 
 were fighting, and not to desert a cause, which, 
 without their aid would be hopeless. Hofer in 
 the mean time gave way to useless lamentations, 
 and while he grieved at the retreat of the Aus- 
 trians, the predominant feeling appeared to be 
 alarm at the prospect of the probable destruction 
 that awaited his country. 
 
 The army of the insurgents notwithstanding, 
 increased daily, and Eisenstecken was indefati- 
 gable in his exertions to heighten their ardour, 
 and to bring them into some sort of discipline. 
 The greatest difficulty he had to surmount was 
 their excessive dislike of any sort of duty dur- 
 ing the night; they could not even be persuaded 
 to mount guard except in the day time. The 
 enemy were probably aware of this, as they at- 
 tacked them several times during the night. 
 
 General Buol had still retained his station on 
 the Brenner, while the troops commanded by 
 Lieutenant Colonel Ertel extended themselves 
 along Mount Isel to Wiltau. Here also Hofer, 
 accompanied by his brave Adjutant Eisen- 
 stecken and the two Capuchin Friars, appeared 
 
 h 2 
 
100 HTSTORY OFHOFER. 
 
 at the head of his men. On the 25th of Mav 
 he attacked the Bavarian division of Deroy, but 
 not being sufficiently well provided with ammu- 
 nition, and unable to keep his men in proper 
 order, he was repulsed. For several hours during 
 the action the fate of the day seemed undecided; 
 the Bavarians were twice driven from the heights 
 of Passberg, but their superior strength, and the 
 advantage they derived from their discipline, at 
 length decided it in their favour. The Tyrolese 
 gave way about five in the afternoon, and the 
 contending parties were separated by a tremend- 
 ous storm. Deroy, however, derived no ad- 
 vantage from this skirmish ; for although he had 
 been successful in the engagement, both he and 
 his troops were astonished and alarmed at the 
 valour and intrepidity with which they had been 
 attacked, and he thought it prudent to retreat ; 
 at the same time issuing a proclamation of par- 
 don from the King of Bavaria and Buonaparte, 
 stating — " that all the Tyrolese who had not yet 
 laid down their arms might be assured of a gracious 
 pardon both from the Emperor of the French 
 and the King of Bavaria, provided they did so 
 immediately." 
 
 To this proclamation Deroy annexed the fol- 
 lowing letter from himself : 
 
history of hofer. 101 
 
 " Tyroleans ! 
 
 " Why do you still persevere in your errors? 
 Youhope, perhaps, by this means to procure some 
 advantage for yourselves ; and yet the effect of 
 such conduct must be, that the Emperor of the 
 French and the King of Bavaria will over- 
 run your country with such a force as will 
 make you feel their power, and overwhelm you 
 with all the horrors of war. Every one who 
 considers the subject reasonably must expect it. 
 
 "It grieves me much to see his Majesty's sub- 
 jects swerve from their duty and their allegiance, 
 and bringing upon themselves inevitable misfor- 
 tune by their obstinacy. Let me advise you, 
 therefore, honest Tyroleans, to make yourselves 
 worthy of the pardon which is so graciously as- 
 sured to you, and to return to your duty and 
 your legitimate monarch. 
 
 " Tyroleans 1 have confidence in my advice ; 
 send some deputy to me with whom I may con- 
 fer; few words will suffice to make us understand 
 each other ; and I swear solemnly and publicly 
 that those who come to me shall return to you 
 
 in safety, 
 
 " Deroy, Lieut.-General, 
 
 and Commandant of the 8th Royal 
 
 Bavarian Division" 
 
 " Head Quarters, Innspruck, 
 
 Q7thMay, 1809." 
 
 h 3 
 
102 HISTORY OF HOFEK. 
 
 After the undecisive skirmish on the 25th, 
 Lieutenant Colonel Reissenfels retreated with 
 the left wing of the Tyrolese over Patsch to 
 Ellenbogen, and Colonel Ertel to Matrey; his 
 advanced guard took up their position at Schon- 
 berg, and extended the line to Mount Isel. The 
 mountains were at the same time covered with 
 scattered parties of the peasantry in all directions, 
 and General Buol occupied the pass of Lueg on 
 the Brenner, where he remained, in spite of the 
 solicitations of the people who urged him to 
 advance and join the van. They were exceed- 
 ingly ill provided with ammunition, and were in 
 constant fear that the enemy would discover it, 
 and attack them before they could hope for a 
 fresh supply. Their anxiety on this subject was 
 however considerably lessened, on hearing that the 
 Bavarians were equally deficient in this respect 
 with themselves. On the 26th and 27th they 
 were employed in making cartridges, mustering 
 the companies of sharpshooters, and examining 
 the state of their arms. Eisenstecken laboured 
 hard to keep the people contented, for many had 
 begun to murmur, and express their wish to re- 
 turn home, because the war could not be decided 
 in a few hours ; some indeed had already put 
 these threats into execution, and quietly retired, 
 but their places were soon supplied by a rein- 
 forcement from Botzen. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 103 
 
 The troops who were engaged on the 29th 
 consisted of between 800 and 900 men, 70 horse, 
 with 5 guns, and nearly 18,000 irregular Ty- 
 rolese Peasants. The Bavarians had 8,000 foot, 
 800 horse, and 25 guns. The situation of 
 both parties was critical in the extreme. The 
 want of ammunition was felt most on the side 
 of the Tyrolese and Austrians, who dared not 
 descend into the plain on account of the supe- 
 riority of the cavalry and artillery of the Bava- 
 rians. 
 
 The enemy had quiet possession of Innspruck, 
 and were posted round the town in the most ad- 
 vantageous manner possible; some of them, 
 however, were very near the rocks of the adja- 
 cent mountains, and they never approached 
 within shot without experiencing the admirable 
 skill with which the Tyrolese peasants used their 
 rifles. The river Sill was on their left flank, 
 while the town and the river Inn protected their 
 rear. 
 
 The Bavarians had all advantages on their 
 side except numbers. They had military skill 
 and experience to oppose to the irregular efforts 
 of an undisciplined peasantry. The regular 
 Austrian force opposed to them was very small, 
 the main body of the Tyrolese army consisting 
 of the peasants. They had an ample supply of 
 
 h 4 
 
104 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 provisions, whilst the Tyrolese had nothing but 
 the scanty supply, which they could carry in their 
 knapsacks, and no better arms than a scythe or a 
 hay-fork ; and when the stock which they 
 had brought with them was exhausted, they did 
 not scruple to desert and return to their homes. 
 Had the Bavarians therefore kept them in sus- 
 pense for a short time, many of them would 
 have gone away, and those who remained would 
 have considered delay, as they always did, a 
 forerunner of defeat. Under all these circum- 
 stances, it is surprising, that the Bavarians suf- 
 fered themselves to be brought to action on the 
 ground they then occupied, or that being com- 
 pelled to engage, they were defeated. The Ty- 
 rolese fought under every disadvantage, and al- 
 though their impetuosity at the moment over- 
 came all obstacles, their leaders confessed, that, 
 situated as they had been, their success was as 
 unlocked for as it was agreeable. 
 
 Hormayr had previous to this action remained 
 at Landeck, from whence he kept up a corre- 
 spondence with Hofer ; but Hofer's letters were 
 so wild and his intelligence so inconsistent 
 and unconnected, that he was unable to under- 
 stand their intentions; and had it not been for 
 a message which he received from Colonel Ertel, 
 he would have been ignorant of the affair of the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEH. 105 
 
 29th. Hofer, he heard, passed the principal 
 part of his time at the alehouse; but he was 
 particularly fond of writing and dispatching 
 couriers, without considering the danger they 
 ran of falling into the hands of the enemy, and 
 of disclosing their plans and motions. The fol- 
 lowing singular letter, which is very charac- 
 teristic of the man, was addressed by him to the 
 inhabitants of the Upper Innthal: — 
 
 " Dear Brethren of the Upper Innthal. — For 
 God, the Emperor, and our dear native country. 
 To-morrow early in the morning is fixed for the 
 attack. With the help of our Holy Mother, we 
 will seize and destroy the Bavarians, and we 
 confide ourselves to the beloved Jesus. Come 
 to our assistance, but if you fancy yourselves 
 wiser than Divine Providence we will do with- 
 out you. 
 
 " Andrew Hofer." 
 
 Hormayr, on the 28th, advanced from Lan- 
 deck to Imst, where he was attacked with a vio- 
 lent inflammatory sore throat, which confined 
 him to his bed, and he could only dictate his 
 orders from thence in a whisper, while his dis- 
 order was augmented by the impatience which 
 he felt to lead in person the attack at Scharnitz, 
 where he was persuaded that his intimate know- 
 
106 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 ledge of the country would render his presence 
 essentially useful. Count Max Arco had ad- 
 vanced from Scharnitz ; but Captains Falk and 
 Count Joseph Mohr met him between Burgberg 
 and Lauterer-See, with the sharpshooters of Lan- 
 deck and Latsch, and after a short skirmish, com- 
 pletely routed him, taking 83 prisoners (among 
 whom was a Bavarian officer of rank), and one 
 ammunition waggon. The enemy had 27 killed ; 
 Count Max Arco's horse was shot under him, 
 which obliged that officer to fly on foot. Teimer, 
 on receiving the news of this success, advanced 
 immediately towards Innspruck. 
 
 On the 29th May, the engagement took place 
 which delivered the Tyrol a second time from 
 the Bavarians. The Tyrol ese began their march 
 at four o'clock in the morning, in the highest 
 spirits and confident of success, and soon after 
 seven the action commenced. As on the 25th, 
 Colonel Reissenfels commanded the right wing 
 and Colonel Ertel the left. The advanced 
 guard was led by Amman, Captain of Chasseurs, 
 a Tyrolese, for whom the countrymen had the 
 greatest affection, and whose military talents 
 fully entitled him to the command with which 
 he was entrusted ; he led them on that day with 
 uncommon gallantry, and fell covered with glo- 
 rious wounds. Reissenfels broke up his posi- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEtt. 107 
 
 tion on the heights of St. Peter, and advanced 
 over Patsch with four columns, to attack the 
 bridges of Volders and Halle. He was accompa- 
 nied by Lieutenant Colonel Leis, of Hohenlohe 
 Bartenstein, and Joseph Speckbacher, who par- 
 ticularly distinguished himself, and who had 
 been throughout a most strenuous supporter of 
 the cause. He was a tall athletic man, with 
 black eyes and hair, stooped considerably, and 
 had generally an expression of dejection and 
 melancholy in his countenance ; but when the 
 war in which he was engaged, or any thing re- 
 lating to his native country (to which he was 
 devotedly attached) was mentioned, his features 
 brightened up with an appearance of animation 
 and pleasure, and he raised his head as if proud 
 of the part he was acting. From his youth he 
 had been famed for the dexterity with which he 
 used his rifle, and esteemed for his courage and 
 intrepidity, of which many remarkable anecdotes 
 are told.* 
 
 * Joseph Speckbacher was born at Gnadenwald, a village in 
 the neighbourhood of Halle, on the 14th of August, 1768. 
 His father was superintendant of the salt works at Halle, and 
 his grandfather had distinguished himself formerly against the 
 Bavarians. " Often," says Speckbacher, speaking of himself, 
 " has my imagination been fired by the recital of his deeds, and 
 my young heart beat to follow his example." His father died 
 
108 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Speckbacher with his column, consisting of 
 €00 men, attacked the enemy at the bridge of 
 Halle, drove them back, and destroyed it. The 
 farm of Rainerhof was three times attacked by 
 
 at the age of 76, leaving eight children,, of whom Joseph (then 
 six years old) was the third. A few years afterwards he lost his 
 mother j and was sent to school, where, in spite of the attention 
 that was paid to him during a considerable time which he spent 
 there, he could not be taught either to read or write. He 
 was naturally of a wild disposition, and the discipline of his 
 school had not the effect of taming him -, he acknowledges him- 
 self, that his conduct was a constant source of uneasiness to his 
 parents and relations. 
 
 At the age of twelve, having formed an intimacy with a few 
 companions as wild as himself, he took to a roving unsettled 
 mode of life, wandering through the forests of Bavaria, and com- 
 mitting all sorts of depredation. During their excursions, how- 
 ever, one of his associates, named Staudacher, was killed be- 
 fore his eyes by a Bavarian chasseur, which appears to have 
 brought him to his senses, for from that moment he quitted the 
 lawless life he had hitherto been leading, for one of respectability, 
 and was afterwards appointed overseer of the salt mines at Halle. 
 
 In his 2 7th year he married Maria Schmeider, of Rinn, a 
 woman of some little property, whose first care was to persuade 
 her husband to make up for his former neglect by learning to 
 read and write, an accomplishment which he found of the 
 greatest use to him afterwards, as he held in consequence seve- 
 ral places of trust and responsibility in his district, and during 
 the war of 1809, in which he was a principal actor, it was ab- 
 solutely indispensable. Speckbacher was decidedly Hofer's 
 superior in military talents, but did not rank so high in public 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER, 109 
 
 the Bavarians, who were each time driven back 
 with considerable loss. During the conflict at 
 the farm, a young woman, who resided at the 
 house, brought out a small cask of wine to 
 encourage and refresh the peasants, and had ad- 
 vanced to the scene of action regardless of the 
 tremendous fire of the Bavarians, with the cask 
 upon her head, when a bullet struck it and com- 
 pelled her to let it go. Undaunted by this ac- 
 cident, she hastened to repair the mischief, by 
 placing her thumb to the orifice caused by the 
 ball, and encouraged those nearest to her to re- 
 fresh themselves quickly, that she might not re- 
 main in her dangerous situation and suffer for 
 her generosity. 
 
 The second column, under Reissenfels, Lieu- 
 tenant Colonel Schulterer, and Captain Gas- 
 teiger, consisting of 500 Tyrolese, one division 
 of Devaux, commanded by Captain Herman and 
 Baron Welling, and a few Hohenzollern light 
 horse, advanced towards the Castle of Ambras, 
 and the bridge over the Sill. 
 
 The third column, formed of 800 Tyrolese, 
 
 estimation. The kind of authority, however, which he pos- 
 sessed over his followers much resembled that of his friend, 
 and the victories gained by the peasantry (whenever he was 
 present) were certainly in a great measure owing to his ardour 
 and intrepidity. 
 
I 10 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 under Captain Wolfgang Natterer, extended it- 
 self over Rinn and Judenstein, and joined Speck- 
 bacher's division. The fourth, of 1200 Tyrolese, 
 under Colonel Stuffer, and one division of De- 
 vaux, under Captains Dobrawa and Immor, re- 
 mained in reserve at Lans. The Castle of 
 Ambras was soon taken, but the Bavarians reso- 
 lutely defended the bridge of the Sill, and drove 
 the Tyrolese back to Passberg, upon which Cap- 
 tain Dobrawa advanced and stormed the bridge 
 with redoubled ardour, and with the assistance 
 of Colonel Ertel drove them to the village of 
 Wiltau. Ertel had advanced on the heights of 
 Mount Isel with the reserve (2,000 men) of 
 Meraner and Algunder, and a company of chas- 
 seurs, vigorously assailed the heights of Mutters 
 and Natters, and drove the enemy away from 
 their guns into the plain. The Capuchin, 
 Joachim Haspinger, took a leading part in this 
 attack, and was seen every where performing 
 extraordinary acts of courage and bravery, and 
 doing great execution with his wooden crucifix. 
 Once, however, his career had nearly been stop- 
 ped, for a Bavarian soldier was about to run his 
 bayonet through his body, when fortunately for 
 him he was shot dead by a Tyrolese sharpshooter. 
 Hofer advanced with the main body down 
 the great road from Mount Isel towards the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. Ill 
 
 town, by the abbey Miltau, in the midst of the 
 enemy's posts. The Bavarian outposts were 
 immediately carried, but the enemy returned to 
 the charge with the greatest resolution, and in 
 spite of the redoubled efforts of the Tyrolese, 
 maintained their ground to the last man. 
 
 It was one o'clock in the afternoon, when 
 Teimer suddenly appeared on the heights of 
 Hotting behind the town and in the rear of the 
 enemy. The number of his followers was small, 
 but a party of Tyrolese in Innspruck had agreed 
 to send two companies and a six pounder to 
 meet him; this reinforcement, however, found 
 great difficulty in joining him, and even when 
 they had effected their purpose were of little 
 service to him. — It is probable that had Teimer 
 appeared at an earlier hour he would have been 
 able to unite his forces with the Tyrolese already 
 engaged, and had he done so, the consequences 
 of the battle might in the end have been much 
 more beneficial to them ; but the delay was not 
 owing to any want of activity on his part ; se- 
 veral unlooked for accidents had befallen him, 
 which unfortunately prevented his arriving 
 sooner. 
 
 The Bavarians, upon Teimer's appearance, col- 
 lected their force and advanced in a strong 
 body, with great resolution, towards Mount Isel : 
 
1 12 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Colonel Ertel's troops, who had been partially 
 dispersed, were collected in haste, and the 
 Austrians as well as Tyrolese drew themselves 
 up in a line prepared to meet the threatened 
 attack of the enemy. The conflict immediately 
 became general, and for some time was main- 
 tained with great courage on both sides ; the 
 Bavarians, by their discipline, had great advan- 
 tages and stood their ground admirably ; but 
 the Tyrolese sharpshooters who were dispersed 
 amongst the rocks committed such havoc in the 
 ranks that they several times gave way, but 
 returned almost immediately to their former 
 position. — Every moment the Tyrolese found 
 their ammunition decrease, and were obliged to 
 slacken their fire for fear of expending it all 
 before a reinforcement could arrive. — In this 
 emergency it was at length found necessary to 
 send an officer with a trumpet to endeavour 
 either to persuade the enemy to lay down their 
 arms, or, at least, to desist from firing for a short 
 time. — He was, however, not to appear as if it 
 was an object of importance to the Tyrolese, 
 but to describe, in the strongest manner, to the 
 Bavarians their dangerous and critical situation. 
 — His arguments had the desired effect — after 
 being introduced twice to Deroy, he was told 
 that they could not give him a decided answer, 
 
HISTORY OF H0FER. 113 
 
 but they begged for a cessation of arms during 
 twenty-four hours, that they might, in the mean 
 time, come to a final resolution — after which 
 they immediately retreated. 
 
 During this interval, Colonel Ertelhad carried 
 one of the enemy's outposts, by stratagem, and 
 forced the piquets to retire to the suburbs, when 
 the long wished for ammunition arrived over 
 the Brenner. 
 
 It was, however, at this time, too late to think 
 of recommencing hostilities ; but had they done 
 so, it was most probable that the Tyrolese would 
 have had the advantage : even had they renewed 
 the fight on the following day, the result would 
 have been the same, for Teimer's force hourly 
 increased in the rear of the enemy, while the 
 bridges were destroyed in all directions, which 
 made them eager to hasten their retreat. 
 
 The Tyrolese performed wonders on this 
 memorable clay, and undaunted by the vigorous 
 and repeated attacks of the well disciplined 
 army of the Bavarians, stood their ground firmly, 
 and whenever an opportunity offered itself, 
 rushed headlong upon the enemy, shouting their 
 patriotic war cry " for God, the Emperor, and 
 our native country," and carried all before them. 
 — It is said that the wounded would not permit 
 themselves to be attended to, because it would 
 
114 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 necessarily have employed a number of men to 
 carry them off the field, and they were aware 
 how small their force was, and how ill such 
 assistance could be spared. 
 
 Amongst the distinguished persons who lost 
 their lives in this action, Count Johann of 
 Stackelberg was particularly regretted. — He was 
 the last count of that illustrious family, and 
 died leaving an affectionate wife and three lovely 
 daughters to deplore his loss. — He was an inti- 
 mate friend of Hormayr, and had joined the 
 insurgents principally on account of his affection 
 for him, but had been a zealous supporter of the 
 cause although he had constantly refused the 
 command. He died gallantly storming the 
 farm of Sarenthein, covered with wounds. The 
 Tyrolese had also to regret the loss of the brave 
 Captain Amman of the Chasseurs, who fell 
 amongst the last that were killed ; his gallant 
 conduct on that day will make his name long 
 remembered in the Tyrol. The whole loss of 
 the Tyrolese amounted to sixty-two killed and 
 97 wounded. — That of the Austrians twenty-five 
 killed and fifty-nine wounded. While the Ba- 
 varians lost, on the 25th and 29th, 2,500 killed 
 and wounded, 569 prisoners and missing, several 
 baggage and ammunition waggons, and a con- 
 siderable number of officers. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 115 
 
 Hofer, although regardless of clanger, and 
 certainly as courageous as any man in the army, 
 took but little part in the active operations of 
 the 29th ; he gave several unconnected orders 
 to Eisenstecken, but remained himself in the 
 public house till late in the day, regardless of the 
 representations of his friends, and of the tumult 
 with which he was surrounded. — It is to be 
 regretted that a man who had already proved 
 his courage, who was at that moment adored 
 by his followers, and whose name is to this day 
 revered throughout his native country, should 
 have been so deficient in energy as to remain a 
 tame spectator of an action in which he might 
 have played so great a part, and which will ever 
 be remembered with pride and satisfaction in 
 the history of the Tyrol. — A solemn feast was 
 instituted soon after the battle, to commemorate 
 a victory which had liberated the Tyrol once 
 more from the Bavarian yoke. 
 
 The battle of the 29th May certainly formed 
 one of the principal events of the war of 1809, 
 not only from the extraordinary gallantry dis- 
 played by the combatants, but because the 
 communication between Germany and Italy 
 was completely closed, so that the principal part 
 of the Bavarian and Wurtemberg force was 
 obliged to remain, for above a month after the 
 final signature of the Znaimer treaty in the 
 
1 16 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 mountains of Salzburg, without being able to 
 advance a step. — Such an advantage, had a proper 
 use been made of it, might have been of essential 
 service, not only to the Tyrol but to Austria 
 itself. — Unfortunately, however, Austria had 
 been intimidated by the success of the French, 
 and had gone too far to recede ; so that while 
 the Tyrolese gained everlasting honour by their 
 conduct, they only brought upon themselves the 
 redoubled wrath of Buonaparte, who, after he 
 had conquered Austria was indignant at their 
 continued resistance. 
 
 As soon as it was dusk the Bavarians collected 
 their whole force behind the town of Innspruck, 
 with the greatest secrecy possible, and after 
 taking the precaution of wrapping the horses 
 feet and wheels of the canons in hay, to prevent 
 their making a noise, they began their march a 
 short time before midnight in the most profound 
 silence over the Miihlauer bridge to Halle and 
 Baumkirchen, and retreated without opposition 
 below the ruins of Schwarz. — Major Loy had 
 been ordered by Teimer to hasten with the 
 landsturm of the neighbourhood to the narrow 
 and woody defile of Mariastein to intercept them 
 if possible.* 
 
 * The Bavariaji Account of the Battle of the 29th of May. 
 ( In the mean time the number of the Insurgents was in- 
 creased, and on the 29th, at nine in the morning, they fell 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 117 
 
 At four o'clock the next morning Ertel en- 
 tered Innspruck followed by crowds of peasants 
 
 upon the corps at Innspruck., with a much larger force. The 
 fight was severe and obstinate, — it lasted the whole day, in 
 that part which borders upon the mountains with nearly equal 
 success on both sides ; at last, about seven in the evening, the 
 Insurgents were driven back on all sides ; but they continued 
 in the vicinity, upon the mountains, where they could not be 
 followed. 
 
 ' While this was going on, the inhabitants of the Upper 
 Valley of the Inn, who had hitherto remained quiet and faithful 
 to their repeated pledges, ran to arms : while those of Vints- 
 chgau, and of the environs of Schwarz and Rattenberg, also 
 rose in insurrection, together with the whole Lower Valley of 
 the Inn. — By this means was intercepted all communication 
 of our troops with Bavaria, and provisions cut off on all sides. 
 ' Supplies could not be obtained from those places which were 
 occupied. The inhabitants of Innspruck, who, from their good 
 conduct, did not deserve starvation, were in want of articles of 
 the first necessity. The division had consumed the greater 
 part of their provisions, and there were no means of obtaining 
 more. These circumstances induced the General to order a 
 retreat, which threatened every hour to become more difficult, 
 by the Insurgents breaking down the bridges. The Austrian 
 Commander thought fit to send an officer with a trumpeter to 
 Lieutenant General Deroi, inviting him to surrender with his 
 corps. This message received the answer it deserved. 
 
 ' The bridges over the Inn at Halle, Volders, Schwarz, and 
 Rattenberg, could not be speedily repaired ; the inhabitants, 
 who had been summoned to work at them, fired at the trum- 
 peters and officers who were sent to them ; the First Lieu- 
 tenant, Von Gunther, was killed at Rattenberg, when deli- 
 
 3 
 
] 18 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 who flocked in indiscriminately and filled the 
 town, and at nine o'clock Hofer marched in at 
 
 vering his commission. — On that account the division could 
 not effect its retreat by the high road ; they found it necessary 
 to follow the left banks of the Inn, through woods and imprac- 
 ticable mountains, while the rebels, who had fortified them- 
 selves there, fired upon our troops. In spite of these obstacles, 
 the division, by their courage and prudence, in two marches 
 fortunately reached Kufstein, and took up a position at Rosen- 
 heim, without losing their artillery, stores, or equipage, and 
 without suffering any considerable loss of men. 
 
 ' The following is a copy of the Summons to surrender 5 sent 
 to our troops during their march. 
 
 c " To the Bavarian Commander in Innspruck. 
 
 ' " I am here with fifty thousand riflemen and soldiers, out of 
 all Vintschgau and the Pusterthal. My comrade is at Berg Isel 
 and its vicinity, with a force as considerable. I yesterday de- 
 stroyed the corps of Count Von Arco at Scharnitz j scarcely 
 did a few escape to carry the fatal tidings. — All the defiles of 
 the Tyrol are occupied, there is no opportunity of escape. I 
 therefore invite the Bavarian troops to an honourable capitu- 
 lation, of which the security of their persons and the most 
 brotherly treatment shall form the foundation. But if the mo- 
 ment of clemency is allowed to pass by, blood may yet need- 
 lessly flow. If I do not receive a satisfactory reply in half an 
 hour, the work of slaughter shall begin again 5 and I swear 
 that no quarter shall be given even to the last Bavarian soldier. 
 (Signed) Teimer, 
 
 Austrian Major and Commandant of the Tyrolese^ 
 { " Head Quarters of Krauef, 
 written May 30. 
 
 1 " P, S. This moment a courier has reached me from Schon- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 119 
 
 the head of the men of the Passeyr Valley, 
 with Joachim Haspinger and Peter. — During 
 the same evening Hormayr came in sick and 
 fatigued from his great exertions. Teimer 
 pursued the flying enemy as far as Kufstein, 
 and Speckbacher to Worgl, but with little suc- 
 cess for they had advanced so rapidly, as to 
 make pursuit useless. 
 
 Immediately after the victory of the 29th of 
 May, many of the peasants who had retired from 
 the field in discontent rejoined the army, while 
 several hundreds who had been made prisoners 
 of war escaped and enrolled themselves again 
 under the standard of their country. — Such an 
 
 berg, in Carinthia, who brings me information that the French 
 army at Vienna was annihilated on the 22d, 23d, and 24th ; 
 that the Russians and Prussians have joined us, that the Arch- 
 duke Ferdinand is already in Swabia, and must be in possession 
 of Nuremberg, Augsburgh, Munich and Ulm. — It is certain 
 that nine Austrian battalions have entered Bregenz, and that 
 20,0Q0 inhabitants of the Vorarlberg are on their March. — Send 
 an answer in half an hour or I will give the signal for a general 
 attack." 
 
 'This summons is quite sufficient to make known this Major 
 Teimer, and to show how far these leaders of the insurgents 
 cany their impudence to mislead an ignorant people by their 
 unfounded reports, nattering themselves in their blindness 
 that they may practise the same tricks upon the Bavarian 
 troops.' 
 
 i 4 
 
120 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 increase of force, while it must have appeared 
 most formidable to the Bavarians, and have en- 
 couraged those who were doubtful of the ulti- 
 mate success of the Tyrolese arms, was a source 
 of great perplexity to Hormayr and the rest of 
 the chiefs, for although the aid of so much ad- 
 ditional strength gave them satisfaction, they 
 had neither the means of arming or clothing the 
 new comers, without which, their assistance 
 would have been comparatively useless. 
 
 In this dilemma Hormayr resorted to the usual 
 expedient, and issued the following proclama- 
 tion. 
 
 " The happy events which have taken place 
 have set at liberty the greatest part of the pri- 
 soners, which had fallen into the hands of the 
 enemy. — These brave men, who have suffered so 
 severely in the unprecedented and obstinate 
 combat for the honour of the Austrians, have 
 found a safe asylum in the Tyrol. 
 
 " It is of the greatest importance to us to 
 augment our force, which has been so much 
 weakened in consequence of the retreat of F. 
 M. Marquis Chastelar, while that of the Bava- 
 rians continues to increase ; their discipline and 
 experience also give them great advantages 
 over us. 
 
 " The whole stock of our military stores and 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 121 
 
 clothing is exhausted, and without these neces- 
 sary articles we shall be unable to attain our 
 object. 
 
 They, therefore, who wish well to their coun- 
 try, must lend their assistance, at least for the 
 moment, until a communication with the main 
 army is rendered practicable, and an intercourse 
 with the interior of Austria is again restored — 
 an event which is of the greatest consequence 
 to the welfare of the Tyrol, and which, after 
 the memorable victories of the illustrious Arch- 
 duke, cannot be far distant. 
 
 " On this account every body, every true 
 Tyrolean whose heart beats for the welfare and 
 liberty of his country, is called upon in the most 
 earnest manner, to send without delay all such 
 arms, rifles, muskets, swords, cavalry saddles, 
 &c. as they can spare, either to the appointed 
 deputation or to head quarters, for which they 
 shall, in proper time, be repaid. 
 
 " The deputies and commandants are ordered 
 to deliver all such stores as they receive with as 
 much haste as possible, at Brixen, which being 
 situated in the centre of the country, will serve 
 as the magazine and rendezvous of all military 
 stores, and from whence it will be easy to send 
 in all directions such assistance as may be re- 
 quired. 
 
122 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 " Without clothing, the troops will be as 
 unable to carry on the war as they would be 
 without arms. — These articles and implements 
 of war are indispensable. Whoever, therefore, 
 lends his assistance to alleviate our wants will 
 render the most important service to his coun- 
 try, &c. &c." 
 
 This proclamation had the desired effect. 
 The recent victory had roused a fresh spirit 
 throughout the country, and every one exerted 
 himself to contribute to the assistance of those 
 who had already done so much, and who, they 
 thought, with their aid, would gloriously attain 
 the object they had so long and so nobly pursued. 
 
 Count Triangi enabled them to arm a consi- 
 derable number of men by taking possession of 
 a large stand of arms belonging to the enemy at 
 Perlach, near Clagenfurt. 
 
 Hormayr in a short time received also several 
 pieces of cannon, which were of the greatest im- 
 portance, because being of a small size, he could 
 place them in situations, and draw them through 
 passes, which would have been impracticable to 
 guns of greater weight. 
 
 In spite of the contributions, however, which 
 were levied throughout the country, the store of 
 ammunition received by the end of May, was not 
 nearly sufficient for the use of the Tyrolese, who 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER 123 
 
 instead of husbanding the small quantity they 
 possessed, took advantage of every wedding or 
 festival that occurred, to fire feux-de-joie, and 
 thus a considerable quantity of powder, which 
 might have been of the greatest consequence to 
 them afterwards was thoughtlessly wasted. 
 
 The Tyrol had few resources in itself. Its 
 own powder mills could make little at a time, 
 and surrounded as the frontiers now were by 
 enemies, it was exceedingly difficult to import 
 powder if it could have been procured from 
 other countries* ; but the want of money was 
 in fact an insurmountable obstacle to any at- 
 tempt of that sort. Austria was the only place 
 to which they could look for succour, and Aus- 
 tria herself had so many expenses to meet at 
 this moment that she had not the means of 
 giving them much assistance ; but to Austria the 
 Tyrolese had always been accustomed to look 
 for support, and now that they were struggling 
 in her cause, they depended entirely upon her in 
 all their difficulties. f 
 
 * 275 cwt. of powder, which had been sent from Switzer- 
 land, was seized by Talleyrand, the French Minister to the 
 Helvetic Confederation at Coire, in the Grisons, and was in 
 consequence lost to the Tyrolese. 
 
 t The distress of the Tyrolese was much increased by the 
 depredations which the Bavarians had committed upon their 
 
124 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 The Archduke John had indeed repeatedly 
 declared his great affection for the Tyrol, and 
 his determination of defending it to the last ex- 
 tremity, acknowledging at the same time its 
 consequence to Austria, and his gratitude for 
 the attachment so repeatedly and so universally 
 expressed to him hy the Tyrolese. It was natu- 
 ral, therefore, that they should look to him for 
 support, and Hormayr encouraged the belief that 
 they would ere long receive it, although it is 
 probable that at that very moment, he saw him- 
 self how little possibility there was of their hopes 
 being realized. Chastelar, however, exerted 
 himself with great earnestness to procure money 
 from his court for the relief of their distress; 
 but his exertions (although very liberal promises 
 were made to him) never had the desired effect. 
 The loss of Vienna, the consequent interruption 
 of all communications, and the danger with 
 which Austria was threatened, were urged as 
 insurmountable obstacles to the fulfilment of 
 their promises.* 
 
 convents. At any other time, the patriots would have found able 
 and willing assistants in the opulent members of those ancient 
 establishments, but now they were themselves so impoverished, 
 that they were compelled to apply for support to their own ex- 
 hausted government. 
 
 * It was however suspected by many of the Tyrolese, that 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 125 
 
 In spite of the difficulties he had to contend 
 with, Hormayr never relaxed for a moment from 
 his exertions ; but he found those difficulties in- 
 crease daily, for as long as the people remained 
 in a state of inactivity it was impossible to keep 
 them in order. Unaccustomed as they were to 
 any sort of military discipline, they could not 
 be taught that the success of the cause depended 
 as much upon their general conduct as upon 
 their bravery in the moment of battle. 
 
 Many hundreds who had left their homes to 
 join the army now wandered idly about, com- 
 mitting every sort of wanton excess, and, as will 
 always happen in times of tumult, when the set- 
 tled course of law must necessarily be in some 
 degree impeded, even the more orderly part of 
 the people imitated the example of the dissolute, 
 and the inhabitants of some of the towns re- 
 fused to pay the taxes and imposts. Hormayr 
 therefore had not only to contend with an enemy 
 superior to him both in numbers and experience, 
 but with an insubordinate set of men on whom 
 
 Chastelar and Hormayr had received considerable sums of 
 money from the Austrian court, and had appropriated them 
 to their own use. The whole conduct of these two men, and 
 the noble disinterested manner in which they behaved through- 
 out, is (I think) sufficient proof that these suspicions were 
 equally unjust and improbable. 
 
126 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 he could not depend and over whom he had but 
 little power. ' 
 
 This disorderly state of things was increased 
 by the vile intrigues of Malanotti, Kolb, Mayer, 
 and others of the same description, w r ho were 
 jealous of Hormayr and Hofer, and encouraged 
 the people to rid themselves of every sort of 
 restraint. The constitution established by the 
 Bavarians still partially existed in the country, 
 for although the Bavarian authorities were driven 
 away, the same method was used to levy money 
 as formerly, and the same system of government 
 was pursued as that which had been originally 
 introduced by them. This was a source of con- 
 tinual irritation to the people, who declared that 
 they would submit to nothing Bavarian, and as 
 their wants increased, instead of listening to the 
 representations of Hormayr, they lived upon 
 the plunder they could extort from their own 
 countrymen ; so that every day their situation 
 became more desperate and the difficulty of re- 
 lieving it greater. 
 
 In the beginning of June a quantity of silver 
 was coined at Halle, which produced 3000 
 florins; and every means were emploj^ed to 
 borrow money from the neighbouring countries, 
 in order to meet the increased expenses of the 
 army ; but the bad success of the Austrian arms 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 127 
 
 created an unwillingness to lend, for it was 
 natural to suppose that the Bavarians, on repos- 
 sessing the Tyrol, would refuse to repay a loan 
 which had been raised to enable the Tyrolese to 
 carry on war against themselves. Hormayr 
 was therefore at length compelled to mortgage 
 his own possessions in the Tyrol, in order to 
 raise a sum, which, from its trifling amount, 
 could only afford temporary alleviation to the 
 distress which was daily increasing. 
 
 Hofer in the mean time was applied to by 
 Hormayr in all emergencies; the cool deter- 
 mination with which he acted on all occasions, 
 his zeal for the cause, and, above all, the sort of 
 idolatry with which he was looked up to by the 
 Tyrolese, gave him more weight than any of the 
 other chiefs, and Hormayr was well aware how 
 serviceable his aid would be in all moments of 
 mutiny or discontent. At the beginning of the 
 war he commanded the whole armed force of his 
 native valley, and after the battle of Innspruck 
 he was made Commander-in-Chief of the whole 
 of the South of the Tyrol. He had by his zeal 
 and undeviating adherence to the cause fully 
 justified the expectations of Hormayr, who, 
 when he selected him from amongst his country- 
 men, was aware of the contracted ideas, and 
 limited knowledge he possessed, but felt con- 
 
128 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 fident that, from his extraordinary character, he 
 would become popular, and render him, perhaps, 
 more real service than a man of brilliant talents 
 or more enlightened mind. 
 
 According to the Bavarian accounts, the Ty- 
 rol ese force in June did not exceed 10,000 men, 
 and of those some were men advanced in years, 
 and many boys scarcely fit to carry arms ; but 
 it is probable that after the battle of Berg Isel 
 their force was larger, as far as can be conjec- 
 tured from the accounts of the numbers that 
 joined the insurgent army ; the great difficulty 
 was not only to arm, but to organize this addi- 
 tional strength, for to some who were accus- 
 tomed only to the labours of the field, the use 
 of a musket was unknown, and to those who had 
 passed their lives as Chamois hunters, wandering 
 wherever their inclinations might lead them, 
 the restraint of military discipline was inde- 
 scribably irksome. In the heat of battle both 
 were equally courageous, equally inveterate 
 against their enemies, and anxious to surpass 
 each other in deeds of gallantry ; but it could not 
 be expected that the wild and uncontrouled 
 bravery of a few ill-armed Chamois hunters 
 would long withstand the superior force and 
 discipline of the Bavarian army. 
 
 Destitute as he was of means, Hormayr could 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 129 
 
 not hope to bribe them by an increase of pay or 
 additional allowance of food; neither threats 
 nor entreaties had any effect upon them, except 
 when the enemy were in sight, and then it was 
 equally difficult to restrain their impetuosity. 
 Hofer was of considerable service on this occa- 
 sion ; for although he, in common with the rest 
 of his countrymen, disliked restraint, he was 
 obliged to obey Hormayr as his superior, and 
 willing to serve him as his friend, and his in- 
 fluence with the peasants persuaded them in 
 many instances to attend to their duties. 
 
 Every exertion still continued to be used to 
 find money and provisions ; Bavaria, from whom 
 the Tyrolese had been accustomed to look for 
 support in a time of scarcity, was closed to them, 
 so that as their only resource they compelled all 
 the citizens who refused, or were unable to carry 
 arms, to contribute a share of provisions or 
 money to the support of the army, and those 
 who were too poor to commute their services for 
 such a payment were obliged to join the insur- 
 gents. 
 
 In this desperate situation of the Tyrol, sur- 
 rounded almost on every side by enemies, dis- 
 tressed for provisions and money, and agitated 
 internally by the discontent and disaffection of 
 
 K 
 
130 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 those who ought to have defended it, there 
 seemed little prospect of carrying on the war 
 with success. But notwithstanding these diffi- 
 culties the cause was not abandoned. 
 
 At this moment Uzschneider, Bavarian di- 
 rector of the salt mines, first appeared, and by 
 his uncommon activity, and talent for writing 
 those wild proclamations which were so attrac- 
 tive to the Tyrolese peasants, he added much to 
 the perplexities in which Hormayr and the other 
 patriot chiefs were involved. The letters which 
 he distributed round the country had an asto- 
 nishing effect in encreasing and encouraging 
 the discontent of the peasants. Some of these, in 
 which he complained unjustly of the excesses 
 committed by the Tyrolese, in the neighbour- 
 hood of Kufstein, and of the general barbarity 
 with which, as he affirmed, they had treated the 
 Bavarian prisoners, were addressed personally to 
 Hormayr, who returned the following answer : 
 
 " Sir, 
 " I have received your two letters of the 22d 
 of June and 3d of July, by means of my ad- 
 vanced guard, as well as those which you gave 
 yourself the trouble to write to several intrepid 
 patriots. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 131 
 
 " I have no other answer to make than that I 
 am equally devoted to the welfare of the Im- 
 perial House of Austria as you are to the King 
 and Princes of Bavaria. 
 
 " What you say of the excesses committed in 
 the district of Kufstein afflicts me. But to that 
 I can only answer that I have made it my most 
 sacred duty to prevent such excesses as far as 
 has been in my power. 
 
 " The inhuman brutality with which the Ba- 
 varian soldiers have treated not only the armed, 
 but the defenceless old men, women, and child- 
 ren, as well as the sick and wounded in the 
 hospital at Schwaz, does not, I allow, entitle 
 the Tyrolese to follow their example. 
 
 " I have fortunately prevented all such con- 
 duct where I have been personally present ; and 
 be assured that I will punish it severely wherever 
 it has happened in my absence. My intercession 
 on the 14th of April saved more than one Ba- 
 varian bailiff from death, and their families from 
 insult. Receive at present my word of honour 
 for the kind treatment of the eleven hundred 
 prisoners of war now w T ith us in Etschland. 
 
 " A man of your understanding must laugh 
 at so absurd an invention, as that the Tyrolese 
 have murdered a single Bavarian or French pri- 
 
 k 2 
 
132 HISTORY OF II0FER/ 
 
 soner of war. Upon the subject of the violation 
 of martial law, we have both a word to say. 
 
 " I should do wrong, however, to attribute to 
 my own endeavours the good conduct of my 
 nation on this subject. The Commandant-Ge- 
 neral, Baron Von Buol, who distinguished him- 
 self so much by his bravery at Kehl, Verona, 
 Marengo, and Memmingen, would blush to 
 serve in a country where such deeds were com- 
 mitted, would despise those vallies, where, from 
 the 13th to the 29th of May, the Bavarians have 
 experienced the force of our arms. 
 
 " I have therefore merely to acknowledge the 
 receipt of your papers, and to return the same 
 remonstrance on our part, with the assurance 
 of the high consideration and esteem I have 
 for you. 
 
 " Joseph Baron Hormayr, 
 8sc. 8sc. 8?c" 
 
 A proclamation of Uzschneider's, which fell 
 into the hands of Baron Taxis about this time, 
 is very characteristic of his manner. The fol- 
 lowing is an extract : 
 
 "Inhabitants of the Tyrol! 
 
 " You know me as Director-General of the 
 Salt Mines at Halle. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 133 
 
 " I come to you now as a messenger of peace; 
 when you wished for peace you rose up against 
 the Bavarians — you involved your native country 
 in war and sedition, because they made you be- 
 lieve that the Austrian troops would be able to 
 protect you. 
 
 " The inexhaustible power of France, and the 
 talents of Napoleon are irresistible, they have 
 already detained the whole Austrian army during 
 four weeks in Bohemia. 
 
 " The French are already in possession of 
 Salzburg, Upper and Lower Austria, Vienna, 
 Carinthia, Steyermach, and Hungary, as far as 
 Ofen. The Russians and Poles are advancing 
 to Gallicia. 
 
 " Austria can assist you no longer ; the whole 
 weight of the war will fall upon yourselves. 
 Several times have hostile troops appeared in 
 your vallies, who have treated you as rebels to 
 your lawful king ; had you remained faithful to 
 him, you would not have seen these troops in 
 
 the Tyrol. 
 
 ■> 
 
 " You still continue to rebel against Bavaria ; 
 your country is at war with France! What will 
 become of you? Do you not see how the troops 
 increase on all sides of you ; what force from 
 France and from the Rhine — from Italy ! These 
 
 K 3 
 
134 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 troops will act against you, if you do not imme- 
 diately return to your duty and your legitimate 
 king. Through your own misconduct you bring 
 these troops into your vallies, and endless misery 
 upon your own heads. Your prosperity is, 
 then, annihilated by yourselves for many, many 
 years. 
 
 " You calculate in vain that Austria will sup- 
 port you; what can Austria? What can a 
 sinking power, who herself wants assistance, do 
 for you ? 
 
 " Tyroleans ! consider your present situation, 
 surrounded as you are by irritated enemies. 
 
 "His Majesty the King of Bavaria is your 
 legitimate master ; he wishes for your welfare, 
 and his heart will bleed when he finds it neces- 
 sary to force you into your duty. 
 
 " He promises — that all those who return to 
 their duty shall be pardoned ; that those whose 
 property has been plundered shall be supported," 
 &c. &c. &c. 
 
 Chastelar, during the battles of Innspruck and 
 Hohenems, remained in the Drauthal, anxious 
 to break into Carinthia and join the Archduke 
 John, which he had been prevented from doing 
 in the beginning of May, by the unnecessary 
 delay of General Schmidt, who, if he had obeyed 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 135 
 
 the Archduke's orders, would have been able to 
 open a free passage to the whole army. 
 
 The main body, consisting of the whole regi- 
 ment of Johann Jellachich, two battalions of 
 Hohenlohe Bartenstein, four small squadrons of 
 Hohenzoller, the Carinthian Militia, a company 
 of Chasseurs, and a large body of Tyrolese Vo- 
 lunteers who composed the advanced guard, 
 advanced up the Drauthal. General Schmidt, 
 who commanded the right wing, was to march in 
 the direction of St. Hermagor, straight through 
 the Gailthal, in order to cut off the communica- 
 tion between Tarvis and Villach. General 
 Fenner, with the left, advanced from Spital over 
 Treffen, in order to come in the rear of the ene- 
 my. Villach was the first point to be attacked. 
 On the 4th of June a brisk skirmish took place 
 near the bridge of the Drauthal. General 
 Rusca retired to Clagenfurt, where he took up 
 his position, and on the 5th June the whole of 
 the Austrian force appeared before that place, 
 and several shots were fired. Some prisoners 
 were taken on the same day, among whom was 
 Colonel Tascher, nephew of the Empress Jose- 
 phine, and son of General Grenier ; from papers 
 in his possession it appeared that General Mar- 
 mont was rapidly advancing from Dalmatia, 
 
 k 4 
 
136 HISTORY OF HO FEU. 
 
 through Clagenfurt and Bruck, in order to join 
 the main army at Vienna. It was, therefore, 
 immediately decided to attack Clagenfurt, and 
 the command of the enterprise was given to 
 Baron Beyder. There were at the moment 
 numbers of Austrian prisoners who bivouacked 
 in the middle of the streets, and who would have 
 joined the besiegers as soon as they had obtained 
 an entrance into the town. In the dusk of the 
 evening a breach in the wall of the dry ditch was 
 discovered, which had been repaired with a single 
 wall of bricks, through which a passage was soon 
 made for the entrance of the troops. Every thing 
 was in readiness, but the design was unfortu- 
 nately prevented by the usual tardiness of Gene- 
 ral Schmidt, who was not yet come up, and who 
 did not arrive till day break, when it would at 
 all events have been too late to put their scheme 
 in execution had not the enemy discovered their 
 design. Early in the morning the enemy com- 
 menced a heavy cannonade from the town, and 
 soon after made a sortie, in which, after a very 
 severe contest, they lost a considerable number 
 of men, but General Schmidt found it necessary 
 to retreat again to the Pusterthal. Marmont 
 was however so much alarmed at the unexpected 
 appearance of Chastelar, that he retired hastily 
 
HISTORY OF HQFER. 137 
 
 over Loibel, and marched backwards and for- 
 wards during several days between Krayburg 
 and Laibach, undetermined what plan to adopt. 
 Chastelar proceeded in his march by Volker- 
 markt, Windischgratz, Hoheneck, and Gono- 
 vitz, and on the 9th of June joined the 9th divi- 
 sion of the army under Count Ignaz Giulay 
 Bannus, and Rochitsch, and a few days after- 
 wards effected a junction with the little army of 
 Archduke John. 
 
 In the beginning of July, Rusca quitted Cla- 
 genfurt, and advanced towards Vienna, to join 
 the main army following the route of the Vice- 
 roy Beauharnois, Macdonald, and Marmont. 
 On the 4th he halted at Knittefeld, and on the 
 5th, General Gavassini met him, and showed 
 an inclination to attack him. On the 6th 
 General Felner reached Leoben, and Colonel 
 Salamon marched with two battalions to Vortz- 
 berg, leaving seventy horse in Weiskirchen. 
 Felner, however, neglected to place piquets, 
 and during the night Rusca appeared before 
 Leoben, forced the bridge and gates, and took 
 possession of the town. In the action Felner 
 was killed, and the whole of his corps dispersed. 
 In the mean time Gavassini remained at St. 
 Ruprecht, while Rusca evacuated Leoben after 
 
138 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 having levied a contribution, and retreated to 
 Kraubat. Had Gavassini immediately advanced, 
 it is probable that he might have retaken Leo- 
 ben, made Rusca prisoner, and dispersed his 
 troops, but by his want of decision the opportu- 
 nity was lost. 
 
 Hormayr, who felt of what importance the 
 possession of such a place as Clagenfurt would 
 be to the xlustrians, and, consequently to the 
 Tyrolese, had formed a plan for the capture of 
 it, which if he could have attempted it, would 
 very probably have met with success ; 2500 men 
 were in readiness to march under General 
 Schmidt, and 5000 Tyrolese volunteers had put 
 themselves under the command of Hofer, eager 
 for the adventure. Nothing was wanting but 
 the co-operation of the pth division of the main 
 army, but they delayed the execution of the 
 plan day after day until the cessation of arms 
 had taken place, when it was too late; and 
 the only advantage that Hormayr derived from 
 the conception of a plan whose success might 
 have proved so beneficial to the cause, was, that 
 several of the discontented Tyrolese were for 
 a time tranquillized by the prospect of active 
 service. 
 
 On the 5th of June, Hormayr hastened with 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 139 
 
 Baron Taxis and the Engineer Baron Hauser to 
 Brixlegg and Rattenberg, where they met the 
 chiefs of the lower valley of the Inn, and with 
 them formed plans for the organisation of a new 
 force. Hofer followed them, accompanied by 
 Eisenstecken, the two Capuchins, and deputies 
 from several vallies in the Tyrol. At this time 
 the Inn was so swollen that it was in many 
 places dangerous to cross ; and as the bridges 
 were all destroyed, they were obliged to effect 
 their passage by means of stilts and long poles, 
 with which they balanced themselves. The 
 country, which a few w T eeks before had been in 
 a state of the highest cultivation, and the vil- 
 lages which were in the neatest order, now pre- 
 sented on every side a scene of ruin and desola- 
 tion, too painful for the eyes of a native of the 
 Tyrol — the promising crops destroyed, and the 
 wretched inhabitants of the once peaceful vil- 
 lages were seen wandering over the country 
 bewailing the loss of their homes and the ruin of 
 their expected harvests. 
 
 The blockade of Kufstein meanwhile conti- 
 nued under the command of the Deputy In- 
 tendant Roschman, whose force was daily in- 
 creased by his activity, and its discipline improved 
 by his care and attention. 
 
MO HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 In the upper valley of the Inn nothing of any 
 consequence occurred. Count Max Arco re- 
 mained at Benedictbeuern with his corps, in 
 order to keep open the communication through 
 the Iserthal from Scharnitz to Munich, while 
 Fuessen was blockaded by some small divisions 
 of the corps de reserve, in order to preserve the 
 pass of Reitti, and General Piccard was ordered 
 forwards with the Wurtembergers by Hofen to 
 the Vorarlberg. 
 
 The chiefs of the Veltlin insurgents had con- 
 tributed from 200 to 300 regular troops, 1,200 
 peasants, and one six-pounder. This body was 
 already in motion by Meran; Captain Muller, of 
 the chasseurs, leading the regulars, and Major 
 Frischman the Tyrol ese. 
 
 The great deficiency of the Tyrolese was in 
 cavalry ; for although a force of that description 
 was unnecessary in their own mountainous 
 country, where their method of warfare gave 
 them perhaps an advantage over more regular 
 troops, it was impossible for them to gain any 
 decisive success in the extensive and open plains 
 of Bavaria and Swabia ; but it was owing at the 
 same time to this very deficiency, that the partial 
 advantages which they gained in their occasional 
 incursions into those countries raised their repu- 
 tation higher in the opinion of their enemies, be- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEIl. 141 
 
 cause they could only be attributed to their 
 natural courage and intrepidity. 
 
 An enterprise of this description was proposed 
 at the end of June, and the attempt was to be 
 made from all parts of the country at once. The 
 Vorarlbergers, who, on the 13th, had defeated 
 the Wurtembergers at Hobranz, were to advance 
 to Kempten, and on taking that place, to endea- 
 vour to form a junction Avith Teimer, who was 
 to pass by Fuessen to Schongau; and Major 
 Dietrich, advancing by Ettal, Murnau and Weil- 
 heim, was to assist the communication, while 
 Baron Taxis was to force a passage by Kochell 
 and Benedictbeuern, connect the line by Mur- 
 nau, and extend himself to the right towards 
 Tolz and Clagenfurt; Count Leiningen towards 
 Trent and Verona. 
 
 In the Vorarlberg there were 20,000 men 
 under arms prepared for this expedition, while 
 the whole of the Tyrolese force did not amount 
 to near that number. 
 
 Unfortunately for the result of the enterprise 
 the enemy had by some means received intelli- 
 gence of the intention, and were prepared every 
 where for resistance. Teimer, by some mistake, 
 advanced too much to the right instead of join- 
 ing the Vorarlbergers, and from his ignorance 
 of the geography of the country, exposed him- 
 
142 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 self to considerable clanger by falling in with 
 the division of Count Max Arco. He narrowly 
 escaped being made prisoner. By this unforeseen 
 disaster the right flank of the Vorarlbergers was 
 left exposed. They sustained a trifling loss of 
 killed and wounded and two small pieces of can- 
 non, for the division under Captain Juritsch 
 came up too late to assist them, and their too 
 great eagerness had led them to engage early in 
 the day. Schneider, who commanded them, 
 behaved with great intrepidity and coolness, and 
 it is probably owing to his conduct that the loss 
 was so trifling. Thus a plan, which had it suc- 
 ceeded, might have led eventually to the entire 
 liberation of the Tyrol, was frustrated, partly 
 by mismanagement, and partly by the superior 
 force and activity of the enemy ; no other alter- 
 native remained for them but to retire in good 
 order after having possessed themselves of Kemp- 
 ten, Isny and Wangen, and taking with them 
 from Constance six pieces of cannon and two am- 
 munition waggons, some hundreds of prisoners, 
 360 sacks of corn and a large quantity of wine. 
 During these operations in the north, Count 
 Leiningen was actively employed in the south. 
 He had taken Bassano by storm, when a detach- 
 ment was dispatched against him from Brescia, 
 consisting of 1,400 foot and 140 horse, who ad- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 143 
 
 vanced by Roveredo towards Matarello in hopes 
 of being able to cut him off and retake Trent ; 
 but he was prepared for them, and drove them 
 tack to Roveredo in great disorder. On the 6th 
 of June, a second detachment of 1,700 foot, £00 
 horse, and 6 guns, advanced to Trent, under 
 Levier, chef de Brigade, who having made himself 
 master of the suburb of Fersina, summoned the 
 town to surrender, and upon Leiningen's refusal, 
 proceeded to bombard it. A courier was imme- 
 diately dispatched to Hormayr, who was still at 
 Brixlegg,to inform him of their perilous situation, 
 and to demand his assistance ; upon which he 
 hastened with Hofer to their relief; but another 
 courier met them at Botzen, with intelligence 
 that the enemy had retired. 
 
 On the 6th of June the whole of the force in 
 the lower Tyrol advanced from Lavis in three co- 
 lumns ; Schlager, of Hohenzollern, led the right 
 wing; Captain Hubler, the main body, and 
 Lieutenant Kukuli remained with the left 
 wing in the mountains, in order to cut off 
 the enemy on the road behind Fersina, and 
 force them to retreat; while Captain Auerbeck, 
 of the chasseurs, attacked them in the rear and 
 completely defeated them. They retired in great 
 disorder, having lost about 1,200 killed and 
 wounded and 150 prisoners. This was the last 
 
144 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 action of any consequence which took place in 
 the south of the Tyrol. The enemy made se- 
 veral incursions as far as Valsugana, where they 
 distinguished themselves by the most revolting 
 acts of cruelty, but were in general repulsed by 
 the peasantry without the assistance of any mi- 
 litary force ; and the few skirmishes of Leinin- 
 gen in the mountains had no result of any con- 
 sequence. 
 
 In the midst of these active operations in the 
 Tyrol, intelligence was received of the decisive 
 battle of Wagram, and the subsequent armistice 
 between the French and Austrians, an event 
 which was equally unexpected and disheartening 
 to the Tyrol ese. The news reached Hormayr 
 at Innspruck on the 17th July, but in so doubt- 
 ful a manner that he was not at first inclined to 
 give credit to it ; but the report had spread a 
 panic amongst the Tyrolese, who saw themselves 
 in consequence compelled either to submit again 
 to the yoke of Bavaria, or to continue the con- 
 test against the conquerors of Austria without 
 the possibility of being supported by those on 
 whom they had till now depended. Many of 
 the insurgents, as was usual in all cases of diffi- 
 culty, gave up the cause as lost, and retired to 
 their homes to await the event, while others 
 more zealous or more desperate, seemed to have 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 145 
 
 redoubled their ardour, and expressed themselves 
 determined to spill the last drop of their blood 
 rather than submit to Bavaria. 
 
 General Buol meanwhile remained at Brixen 
 in a state of the most perplexing uncertainty. 
 He received orders from the Duke of Dantzig 
 to evacuate the Tyrol, as hostilities had ceased, 
 and a stipulation to this effect had been made in 
 the armistice which was just concluded; but 
 from his own government he had received no 
 orders to that effect, nor indeed any official inti- 
 mation of an armistice. He therefore refused to 
 alter his present position. Hormayr, who had 
 received a command from Angles, Intendant at 
 Salzburg, to surrender the Tyrol to Bavaria, and 
 compel the Tyrolese to lay down their arms, re- 
 turned for answer, that until he was commanded 
 to do so' by the Court of Austria, he would not 
 yield a single foot of ground. Their doubts, 
 however, were soon cleared up, and the unwel- 
 come report of the fatal day of Wag-ram proved 
 to be too well founded. The armistice was con- 
 cluded at Znaim on the 12th of July, and it was 
 agreed that the Austrian troops who were then 
 in the Tyrol and Vorarlberg should immediately 
 evacuate those countries ; but the insurgents 
 refused to acknowledge the agreement, and cle- 
 
146 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 clared that they would submit to nothing but 
 the orders of the Emperor of Austria, who had 
 affirmed that he would accede to no peace that 
 did not ensure to him the possession of the 
 Tyrol, and they would not permit the Austrian 
 troops to leave the country. 
 
 One of the most violent amongst those who 
 refused to accede to the armistice was a man 
 named Kolb, who not only expressed his deter- 
 mination of using every means in his power to 
 detain the Austrians, but proposed to General 
 Buol that he should put to death all the pri- 
 soners then in his hands. He had taken up his 
 quarters at Lienz, and intercepted all the dis- 
 patches indiscriminately, whether Austrian or 
 French, took several officers prisoners, and de- 
 clared every one who would not stand by him, 
 a traitor to his country. Hormayr, who had 
 foreseen that the indignation of the patriots 
 would vent itself upon the unfortunate pri- 
 soners, used every exertion, as soon as he was 
 convinced that an armistice had really taken 
 place, to secure to them a safe retreat out of the 
 country, and by his interference the greatest 
 part of them escaped unhurt ; some few, how- 
 ever, were unfortunate enough to fall victims to 
 the ungovernable rage of the peasantry. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER, 147 
 
 Eisenstecken, Martin Schenk, and Peter Mayer 
 were Kolb's principal confederates, but their de- 
 signs were neither of so sanguinary, nor so wild 
 a nature as his ; they were equally eager to detain 
 the Austrian troops, but their first object was to 
 seize the ammunition, and tempt the privates to 
 desert to their cause, to disavow all the officers 
 who opposed their intentions, and to send them 
 with Hormayr and Buolout of the country. Lien- 
 ingen they looked upon as a person who would 
 probably join them, and to Hofer they looked as 
 a chief who would lead them on, and probably 
 enable them to effect the liberation of their 
 country, without the assistance of the Austrians 
 who had now deserted them. 
 
 Hofer himself shortly appeared amongst them, 
 and declared that he was willing to accept the 
 office of Commander-in-Chief if they wished to 
 confer it on him, but if they preferred Lieningen 
 he was prepared to draw his sword as simple 
 commandant of the Passeyr Valley, but that 
 in whatever situation it pleased God to place 
 him he would sacrifice his life for the cause in 
 which he was engaged, and that he was confident 
 the Emperor of Austria would not desert them, 
 but return as soon as he was able to their as- 
 sistance. This declaration was received with 
 shouts of approbation, and Hofer from that 
 
 12 
 
148 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 moment became Commander-in-Chief of the 
 Tyrolese*. 
 
 His first care was to organise a fresh force 
 sufficient to defend his country, and in a short 
 time hundreds of peasants flocked to his standard, 
 partly from a sort of confidence that they had 
 in his powers, and partly from the hope that the 
 discipline of his army would be less strict than 
 that which had hitherto been so irksome to them, 
 so that he found himself at the head of a formi- 
 dable body of men, all prepared to follow him 
 and sacrifice their lives in his service. 
 
 At the same time hundreds of the Austrian 
 troops deserted to him daily. They had begun 
 their march with the intention of leaving the 
 country, but were prevented by the Tyrolese, who 
 persuaded them to remain and join their army. 
 In Etschland, Colonel Taxis was deserted by 
 nearly the whole of his corps, who, upon Hofer's 
 appearance marched quietly out to meet him, 
 and neither threats nor entreaties could recall 
 them. The whole of the troops in the Vorarl- 
 berg declared unanimously that they would 
 never abandon their brothers the Tyrolese, so 
 that in a few days the whole country was once 
 
 * His vanity on this occasion carried him so far that he is 
 said to have caused his initials to be stamped on a new coin. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 149 
 
 more in a state of insurrection from one end to 
 the other. 
 
 On the 9th of August all the Austrians who 
 had not deserted to the insurgents had left the 
 Tyrol; those who remained being about 600 
 men with several officers. General Schmidt 
 delivered up the Fort of Sachsenburg to Rusca, 
 according to the stipulation of the armistice. 
 
 No one felt more deeply the painful situation 
 of the Tyrolese at this time than the Archduke 
 John ; he had always been particularly interested 
 in their welfare, and the following extract from 
 a letter, addressed by him to General Buol, 
 shows clearly what were his feelings at that 
 moment. 
 
 " I enclose you a copy of the armistice con- 
 cluded by the army of Germany ; you will see 
 by the 4th Article that the Tyrol must be im- 
 mediately evacuated, but it does not appear that 
 this would be necessary supposing it to be occu- 
 pied by French or Bavarian troops. This armis- 
 tice has astonished me ; but, alas ! it is too true, 
 and the enemy will doubtless press for the per- 
 formance of the conditions. His Majesty, who 
 is with me here, is particularly concerned that 
 on account of this armistice the dear Tyrol 
 which was occupied by us must be evacuated. 
 He is concluding negociations in order to shorten 
 
 l3 
 
150 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 the misery of the present moment, and to esta- 
 blish stipulations from which he will not swerve. 
 A few days will shew whether peace or renewed 
 hostility will be the consequence. His Majesty 
 will do alt in his power for the Tyrol, and if pos- 
 sible will keep it for himself, or at least if he is 
 compelled to resign it, will make such agree- 
 ments as shall secure the Tyrolese from being 
 punished for their fidelity and the sacrifices they 
 have made to him; and in case of emergency, 
 he offers an asylum to the chiefs who are inclined 
 to settle in the Austrian dominions. This is all 
 I can learn from the conversations which I have 
 had with his Majesty ; my own opinion of the 
 actual state of the Tyrol is as follows : I foresee 
 how difficult it will be to make the inhabitants, 
 who have done so much, comprehend the neces- 
 sity of our leaving the country; but we promise, 
 in the event of peace, to take care of them, and 
 of war to support and protect them. The first 
 demands their submission, the second their as- 
 sistance. In the first moment of anger they 
 will either allow the troops to depart, and curs- 
 ing those who have deserted them, listen to the 
 propositions of the Bavarians, or they will refuse 
 to permit the Austrians to leave the country. 
 In either case we have a difficult game to play; 
 our first object is to gain time. The armistice 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 151 
 
 was to continue for a month according to the 
 7th Article of the Treaty ; nine days have al- 
 ready elapsed ; so that the negociations which 
 have already commenced will soon prove whe- 
 ther we are to expect peace or a renewal of 
 hostilities. In the event of peace we shall soon 
 know the fate of the Tyrol, but on the recom- 
 mencement of war we should be obliged to recall 
 
 . Jjt- J/- £U *Y- A&r * v - -V- 4tr *i£- -^- *V- 
 
 " Meanwhile all that w r e can do is to endea- 
 vour to gain time and tranquillize the minds of 
 the inhabitants as much as possible. 
 
 " General Buol will command the whole of the 
 troops, and Baron Hormayr will remain either 
 with him or General Schmidt according to cir- 
 cumstances ; but it is advisable at all events that 
 these two commanders should act together, that 
 by being able to apply to each other for advice, 
 they may do nothing rashly. You have both a 
 difficult part to act, but silence is above all things 
 necessary; your secret must remain impenetra- 
 ble, that your intentions may not be discovered, 
 or the consequences might be dreadful. The 
 accounts you send me must be by the safest 
 possible conveyances, that they may not run the 
 danger of being intercepted." 
 
 " Archduke John." 
 " Head Quarters, St. Grotk, 
 Z\ st July, 1809." 
 
152 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 On the receipt of the above letter General 
 Buol published the following proclamation, and 
 immediately begun his march to the frontiers : 
 
 " Tyroleans and Vorarlbergers ! 
 
 " An Austrian courier has brought from the 
 head quarters of his Imperial Highness the 
 Archduke John, the confirmation of the intelli- 
 gence that an armistice had been concluded on 
 the 12th of this month, by the 4th Article of 
 which the whole of the Austrian troops now in 
 the Tyrol and Vorarlberg are compelled to eva- 
 cuate those countries. 
 
 " The distresses of the army, and the unplea- 
 sant appearance of political events have induced 
 his Majesty to take a step which has given him 
 so much pain ; the greatest care, however, will 
 be taken of the Tyrolese. The Archduke John 
 has given us the most positive assurance of it. 
 
 " With this promise, the Tyrolese are exhorted 
 to submit peaceably, that the country may be 
 spared the horrors which would infallibly be 
 drawn upon it by their continued resistance. 
 
 " I am compelled, according to my orders, to 
 leave the country, and consequently you can no 
 longer depend upon me for support. Let me 
 then entreat you to submit with patience to the 
 will of Providence. 
 
 " I have recommended the Tyrolese to the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 153 
 
 protection of Field Marshal the Duke of Dant- 
 zig, whose army is destined to act against the 
 Tyrol. 
 
 " Your own conduct will have the greatest 
 influence over him, and it depends upon your- 
 selves either to promote the welfare or destruc- 
 tion of your country. 
 
 " With a heavy heart, and gratitude for your 
 early assistance, I find myself compelled to make 
 this communication to you. 
 
 " Baron Buol." 
 "Brixen, Q9th July, 1809." 
 
 Hormayr, who had struggled so long for his 
 country, who had in spite of the discontent of 
 the people, and of the difficulties which were 
 opposed to him, carried on the war with so much 
 success for some time, felt most acutely the 
 situation in which the Tyrolese were now placed. 
 Still anxious to preserve them from the Bavari- 
 ans, but dreading the consequences of continued 
 opposition to their power, he scarcely knew how 
 to act. His immediate object was to quell the 
 increasing irritation of the peasantry ; he used 
 his utmost endeavours to persuade Hofer not 
 only to abandon his project of carrying on so 
 hopeless a war, but to accompany the Austrians 
 in their departure from the country. With 
 
154 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Hofer, however, his persuasion had no effect 
 Speckbacher, Sieberer, Aschbacher, and Frisch- 
 man resolved to follow him, but Speckbacher, in 
 an interview with Hofer, in which he had in- 
 tended to take leave of him, was persuaded to 
 remain ; and Hormayr, accompanied by a very 
 few friends, left his country to maintain its strug- 
 gle for liberty under the direction of Hofer. 
 
 Hofer, with all his courage, and with the 
 numerous advantages which he possessed, was 
 not equal to the command to which he had been 
 called by the unanimous voice of his country- 
 men ; it was rather under his influence than his 
 direction that the war was carried on. His want 
 of decision at the moment when he found him- 
 self deserted by the Austrians, was too evident 
 a proof of his inability to direct so large a force, 
 for from the 29th of July until the 2d of Au- 
 gust, although every thing was in a state of 
 preparation, and the peasants were in arms 
 throughout the country, no active measures of 
 hostility were undertaken, and Hofer remained 
 concealed in the valley of Passeyr, without ex- 
 erting himself to promote the success of his own 
 projects. 
 
 Haspinger, the Capuchin, who had retired to 
 his convent near Brixen, immediately after the 
 victory at Berg Isel, on the 29th of May, and 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 155 
 
 to whom the people came for advice in the ab- 
 sence of Hofer, was equally irresolute how to 
 act. He seemed to think that, without the aid 
 of the Austrians, all the resistance that they 
 could make against the overwhelming power of 
 the enemy would prove fruitless, and although 
 equally inveterate against the government of 
 Bavaria with the rest of his countrymen, he 
 hesitated to resume his station, and to take an 
 active part in a cause which he now considered 
 hopeless. His attachment to his country, and 
 his desire to see it free, at length however pre- 
 vailed, and on the 2d of August* he appeared 
 at the Inn at Brixen. Haspinger here found 
 three of the principal actors in the subsequent 
 war (who had pledged themselves mutually to 
 sacrifice their lives in the struggle for the liberty 
 of their country rather than abandon so holy a 
 cause), Martin Schenk, who was the friend and 
 confident of Hofer and Eisenstecken, Peter 
 Kemmater, and Peter Mayer f. With these 
 
 * From that day he always went by the name of Rothbart 
 —Red Beard. 
 
 f The last of these men, who was particularly inveterate 
 against the Bavarians, was tried by a court-martial, and shot at 
 Botzen, in February, 1810, for having carried arms after the 
 proclamation issued in the month of November preceding, by 
 Eugene Beauharnois, at Villach. In his last moments, as the 
 
156 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 men Haspinger concerted his plans of attack, 
 and hostilities immediately commenced. 
 
 On the 4th of August Haspinger led a strong 
 body of Tyrolese against the combined forces of 
 the French and Saxons, who were in the Eisack- 
 thal, under the command of General Rouyer. 
 The action lasted from an early hour in the 
 morning until four in the afternoon ; and from 
 the havoc occasioned by the well directed aim of 
 the Tyrolese sharpshooters, as well as the despe- 
 rate resistance of the whole force, the enemy 
 sustained considerable loss, according to their own 
 account 1200 men, and 53 officers. Amongst 
 these was the Saxon Colonel, Baron Hennings, 
 who died of his wounds at Brixen, two days 
 after the battle. One extraordinary method of 
 destruction used by the Tyrolese on this occa- 
 sion ought not to be omitted. They had, by the 
 direction of Haspinger, felled several enormous 
 larch trees, upon which they piled large masses 
 of rock, and heaps of rubbish; the whole being- 
 supported by strong cords, by means of which 
 they were suspended over the edge of a preci- 
 pice. During the action the Tyrolese decoyed 
 a body of the enemy's troops, by appearing to 
 
 soldiers were about to fire, he took a small crucifix which he 
 always wore next his heart, and delivered it to a by-stander, 
 " because," he said,' "it might perhaps turn the bullets." 
 
HISTORY OF H0FER. 157 
 
 retreat, immediately under the spot, when in an 
 instant the ropes were cut, and the whole struc- 
 ture came thundering down upon the heads of 
 the unfortunate troops beneath. Few had time 
 to escape ; the principal part of them were in- 
 stantly crushed to death ; a death-like stillness 
 succeeded to the tremendous noise of the falling 
 avalanche, which was alone interrupted by the 
 dreadful shrieks of those who were perishing in 
 the ruins. For a moment the firing ceased on 
 both sides, but was soon renewed with double 
 vigour on the part of the enemy, who at length 
 succeeded in forcing the Tyrolese to retreat to 
 the Laditcher bridge, which was immediately 
 blown up. The enemy had sustained too severe 
 a loss to renew the combat, and both parties se- 
 parated. Haspinger immediately retreated to 
 Brixen to collect provisions and to reassemble 
 those peasants who had returned there during 
 the action. 
 
 As soon as the news of this affair had trans- 
 spired, Hofer # quitted his place of concealment 
 in the Valley of Passeyr, and on the 7th of 
 August appeared at the head of several thou- 
 
 * Hofer was summoned by the Duke of Dantzig to appear 
 at Innspruck before the 11th of August, to which he replied, 
 that " he would come accompanied by 10,000 sharpshooters.", 
 
158 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 sand men on the Gaufen, where he joined 
 Speckbacher, who had already taken up his 
 position there. His appearance was soon known 
 throughout the country, and his presence seemed 
 to inspire the patriots with new courage, so that 
 his army gained strength every day in numbers 
 as well as in spirit and enthusiasm. The name 
 of Hofer was sufficient to rouse those to activity 
 who still hesitated, and the success which 
 marked the commencement of this second war, 
 confirmed the most sanguine in their hopes and 
 expectations. 
 
 In the beginning of the month of August 
 General Stengel made several ineffectual efforts 
 to dislodge Speckbacher from the advantageous 
 position which he had taken up at Tschofes, 
 but he was repulsed in every attack, and was at 
 length compelled to abandon his attempts in 
 that quarter. The Tyrolese, however, on the 
 great road to Brixen, were driven back and 
 dispersed after a severe contest, by Count Witt- 
 genstein, and the Duke of Dantzig upon re- 
 ceiving intelligence of his success, advanced 
 over the Brenner, at the head of a strong body 
 of chosen troops, with the intention of over- 
 whelming the patriots and passing through the 
 country with his whole army. — This, however, 
 was a task beyond his powers. — He had not 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 159 
 
 advanced far, before the rear of his army was 
 attacked with great fury by a body of peasants 
 and completely routed, it was a tumultuary 
 attack without order or regularity ; but irre- 
 sistible on that account. The peasants tore the 
 dragoons from their horses, and killed them 
 with the butt ends of their muskets. — Lefevre 
 himself escaped with the greatest difficulty to 
 the village of Mauls, having lost his hat and 
 sword ; here, however, he was not safe, a fresh 
 force of peasants immediately attacked the rem- 
 nant of his scattered army which had fled with 
 him, and in a short time completed the victory 
 so gloriously begun by their countrymen. The 
 whole division was dispersed over the moun- 
 tains, having deserted their guns, ammunition 
 and baggage waggons, which were left in the 
 hands of the conquerors. Lefevre after having 
 collected a few of his followers retreated in 
 haste to Innspruck, disguised as a common 
 trooper, where he arrived on the 11th of August 
 at four o'clock in the afternoon, and on the same 
 night all the survivors of his discomfited army 
 were reassembled in that city. 
 
 On the 8th of August, 1700 Bavarians under 
 the command of Baron Bourscheidt, and the 
 French Colonel Vasereau, advanced from Lan- 
 deck towards Prutz, in hopes of being able to 
 
160 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 pass through the Vintschgau and fall upon the 
 rear of Hofer's troops at Sterzing. — They were 
 met, however, at Prutz by a handful of Tyrolese 
 sharpshooters, who, after having fired upon 
 them with great success for a short time, re- 
 treated to the adjacent mountains, where, under 
 the shelter of the rocks, they kept up a continual 
 harassing fire upon the enemy. — These intrepid 
 men were shortly joined by a large body of their 
 countrymen, who, after a severe contest of se- 
 veral hours, compelled their opponents to retreat 
 with considerable loss. The Bavarians in vain en- 
 deavoured to rally and enter the village of Prutz, 
 they were repulsed in every attack, and after 
 having kept up the fight until the troops were 
 completely worn out with fatigue, and had lost 
 great numbers, they found it necessary to retreat 
 to Dullenfeld where they passed the night. At 
 break of day the Tyrolese recommenced their 
 fire, but the Bavarians were too distant from the 
 mountains to be much annoyed by it, and they, 
 therefore desisted as soon as they discovered that 
 they were merely wasting their powder : a pause 
 of some hours ensued, at the close of which, the 
 Tyrolese, impatient at the immoveable manner 
 in which the Bavarians retained their position, 
 assembled their whole force amounting to about 
 300 men, armed with clubs, pikes and scythes, 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. l6l 
 
 and shouting as they advanced, precipitated 
 themselves upon their enemies in the plain. 
 
 The Bavarians, on seeing their determination, 
 displayed a white flag and called for quarter ; 
 upon this they were desired by the Tyrolese to 
 lay down their arms, and to deliver themselves 
 up as prisoners of war, together with their am- 
 munition and horses. — To this they readily 
 agreed, provided their lives were spared. — About 
 900 men and 200 horses fell into the hands of 
 the Tyrolese, the rest having previously escaped, 
 with the exception of about 250 who were 
 killed. — The Tyrolese, during these two days, 
 had only seven killed and four wounded. 
 
 Immediately after the evacuation of Sacksen- 
 burg, Rusca had advanced to Lienz. He chiefly 
 distinguished himself by his atrocities. Every 
 peasant who was found in arms was instantly 
 shot ; women and old men who were incapable 
 of active warfare fell victims to his barbarity. 
 The peasants, justly incensed at his conduct, 
 soon determined to be revenged ; and when he 
 least expected it, they appeared in force at 
 Lienzer Clause, headed by Anton Steger of the 
 Pusterthal, Hibler, Adam Weber, and Baron 
 Luxheim, a Swabian volunteer, who had been 
 formerly in the English service. — Rusca de- 
 fended himself but a short time against the 
 
 M 
 
162 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 furious attacks of this army of irritated peasants, 
 and having lost 1200 men he retreated in the 
 utmost disorder to the fort of Sacksenburg, 
 taking with him great numbers of sick and 
 wounded. 
 
 Thus without the aid of the Austrians, the 
 Tyrolese had been successful in almost every 
 attack upon their enemies, and these successes 
 did not fail to inspire them with the most con- 
 fident hopes of being able to realize those plans 
 which had been so ably formed for the libera- 
 tion of their country. Hofer became every day 
 more beloved — every victory was attributed to 
 him ; and when the army under his command de- 
 feated the enemy a second time in the auspicious 
 neighbourhood of the Isel mountain, he was 
 looked upon as a sort of deity, and Hofer's 
 famous battle of the 12th of August is men- 
 tioned to this day in the Tyrol with a degree 
 of exultation that it is not easy to describe. 
 
 On the memorable 12th of August the Duke 
 of Dantzig had assembled the whole of his 
 force, which consisted of about 25,000 men and 
 forty pieces of cannon, on the plain before Inn- 
 spruck, — Harassed as they had been throughout 
 the country by the incessant attacks of the 
 peasantry, and defeated in almost every attack, 
 their courage had considerably diminished; — ac- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. l6S 
 
 customed as they had hitherto been to victory, they 
 were unwilling to face again an enemy who had 
 given them such decided proofs of courage and 
 firmness. — They no longer boasted of being able 
 to " disperse the rebels," but seemed only anxious 
 to ensure to themselves a safe retreat to Salz- 
 burg. — It is said that Lefevre himself was not 
 particularly confident of success, although his 
 army was so much superior in numbers, for he 
 had learned by experience the character of those 
 he had to oppose. 
 
 It is extraordinary, therefore, that at this 
 moment, when the Tyrolese occupied so strong 
 and so advantageous a position, when he knew 
 that their force was considerable, and that his 
 own troops had lost much of their usual spirit 
 and scrupled not even to express every where 
 their reluctance to fight, Lefevre should have 
 hazarded a battle, the result of which he knew 
 must be of the greatest importance to the Tyro- 
 lese if they were successful, and if he were so, 
 would be of little comparative consequence to 
 the Bavarians. 
 
 The Tyrolese were posted on the Isel moun- 
 tain, the scene of the former great victory of the 
 29th of May.— Their force consisted of 18,000 
 men, 300 of whom were Austrians who had 
 determined to share their fate when the Austrian 
 forces were recalled. — They were tolerably sup- 
 
 m .2 
 
164 HISTORY CM? HOFER. 
 
 plied with ammunition, but their provisions were 
 nearly exhausted, and some hundreds of peasants 
 in consequence of this want had already deserted 
 to their homes. — Hofer commanded in person, 
 and took up his quarters, as he had done in May, 
 at the public house of the Spade, under the 
 Schonberg. — Haspinger, the Capuchin, although 
 so worn out by his indefatigable exertions as to 
 have scarcely strength to walk, advanced by 
 Natters and Mutters to the Husselhof. The 
 right wing was commanded by Speckbacher, 
 whose line extended from the heights of Pass- 
 berg to the bridges of Halle and Volders ; under 
 him Count Joseph Mohr, at the head of the 
 peasants of the Vintschgau, was particularly 
 distinguished. 
 
 During the night previous to the battle, Has- 
 pinger roused Hofer from his sleep, and having 
 first united with him in fervent prayer, he re- 
 ceived his orders and hurried to the outposts to 
 impart them to the several chiefs. At six o'clock 
 in the morning the firing commenced. The plan 
 of attack resembled much that of the 29th May ; 
 the object of the Bavarians appeared to be to 
 dislodge the Tyrolese from their position on the 
 heights of Mount Isel, while they, on the other 
 hand, as they drove back their enemies, seemed 
 intent upon making themselves masters of the 
 bridges and approaches to the town. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. l65 
 
 The firing was tremendous, and continued for 
 several hours with unabated fury. The bridge 
 of the Sill was contested with great bravery on 
 both sides, but at length the Bavarians gave 
 way : the ground was strewed with the dead 
 and dying, and on every side crowds of Bava- 
 rians were seen flying, routed by the charges of 
 the Tyrolese. The victory was at length com- 
 plete. The loss of the Bavarians must have been 
 immense: 1,700 wounded fell into the hands 
 of the conquerors. The loss of the Tyro- 
 lese amounted only to 50 killed and 132 
 wounded.* 
 
 The Bavarians retreated in haste over the Inn 
 immediately after the battle, and began their 
 march towards the frontier, committing, accord- 
 ing to their usual custom, every sort of excess, 
 laying waste the country in all directions, 
 setting fire to villages, and plundering the 
 inhabitants. On the 17th, the third divi- 
 sion entered Kuf stein, and by the 20th the 
 whole army was in Salzburg. The Tyrolese 
 pursued them to some distance, and Speck- 
 bacher had a skirmish with the rear guard at 
 
 * This is the Tyrolese account. The Bavarians estimate 
 the loss of the Tyrolese at 1,000 men, and acknowlege their 
 own to have been 5,000. 
 
 M 3 
 
166 HTSTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Schwaz, in which they lost a great number of 
 men. 
 
 On the 15th of August, (Napoleon's birthday) 
 Hofer made his triumphal entry into Innspruck, 
 having delivered his country a third time from 
 the Bavarians. His presence^ at this juncture 
 was particularly necessary, for the people were 
 beginning to plunder every thing they could 
 seize ; but as soon as he appeared, order was re- 
 stored ; the fear of his displeasure checked every 
 disposition to plunder. He immediately gave 
 directions that whatever had been taken either 
 from the Bavarians or from the country people, 
 should be delivered up within eight days ; a 
 search was made by his order in every house in 
 Innspruck, and a heavy fine imposed upon 
 all persons who were detected in an attempt to 
 secrete any stolen property, however inconsider- 
 able its value might be. 
 
 Hofer, upon entering Innspruck, took up his 
 quarters at the Imperial Castle, where he conti- 
 nued to reside during his stay. His first care 
 was to order a general thanksgiving for the late 
 victory, which was observed throughout the 
 country with the greatest solemnity. He as- 
 sumed the title of Imperial Commandant of the 
 Tyrol, and surrounded by his aid-de-camps and 
 attendants, kept up a sort of court, which, when 
 we consider his origin, his character, and his 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 16*7 
 
 manners, must appear in the highest degree ridi- 
 culous, but which was in some sort acknow- 
 ledged by his countrymen, who obeyed his pro- 
 clamations and edicts with the most scrupulous 
 attention. 
 
 Hofer, however, had many difficulties to con- 
 tend with. The inhabitants in the south of the 
 Tyrol were discontented and riotous, and during 
 the temporary absence of Morandell, who had 
 been appointed commandant of that part of the 
 country, had put themselves under the command 
 of new leaders, who were not equal to such a 
 command. Hofer therefore hastened to Botzen, 
 aware that his presence there was material, and 
 on the 4th of September issued the following 
 proclamation : 
 
 " Best beloved South Tyroleans. 
 
 " It is with great displeasure that 1 have learnt 
 your ill-treatment of my troops. I publish now, 
 my dear brave countrymen and brothers in arms, 
 this proclamation, that the well-thinking may 
 know how to behave to those who are con- 
 ducting themselves so ill. From my heart, which 
 beats for you all, I detest robbery and depreda- 
 tion of every sort. I hate contributions and ex- 
 tortions, and be assured that I will not pardon 
 these mean actions. 
 
 m 4 
 
168 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 " It is the duty of every brave defender of his 
 country to watch over the honour, and cultivate 
 the affection of his neighbour, that he may not 
 incur the displeasure of the Almighty who de- 
 fends us so miraculously. Dear brothers in 
 arms recollect youselves — against whom do we 
 fight ? against friends or foes ? Against our 
 enemies we have fought and conquered, and will 
 still fight against them, but not against our bro- 
 thers, who have been already so much oppressed. 
 Consider that we ought to protect and assist our 
 fellow creatures, who are unable to carry arms. 
 What would the world, the witness of our con- 
 duct — what would our posterity say, were we 
 not to fulfil these duties? The glory of the 
 Tyrolese would be lost for ever ! 
 
 " Dear countrymen. The whole world is asto- 
 nished at our deeds. The name of the Tyrolese 
 is already immortalised, and it is only necessary 
 that we should fulfil our duty towards God and 
 our neighbour to complete a work so gloriously 
 begun. 
 
 " Brave countrymen and brothers in arms, 
 supplicate the Creator of all things, who is alike 
 able to defend or destroy kingdoms at his plea- 
 sure, and he will guide you. Who at this mo- 
 ment would wish to disturb our tranquillity? I 
 summon all the clergy and those who are unable 
 
HISTORY OF HOFEU. 169 
 
 to bear arms to assist and protect my troops, and 
 such as are not able to render them any service 
 to implore God on their knees to bless our en- 
 deavours. 
 
 " I further acquaint all public bodies, towns, 
 villages, and my troops in general, that, as so 
 many irregularities have happened in conse- 
 quence of the conduct of commandants of their 
 own choosing, during the absence of Joseph 
 Morandell, whom I had appointed Commandant 
 of die Southern Tyrol, no proclamations, orders, 
 or arrangements are to be attended to, unless 
 issued and signed by him. 
 
 " Andrew Hofer, 
 
 " Commander in Chief of the 
 " Tyrol." 
 
 "Botzen, Uh September, 1809." 
 
 Hofer, however, although certainly unequal 
 to direct the government at the head of which 
 he was placed, did not remain inactive. His 
 orders were given without much thought, but 
 with a decision which was serviceable to the 
 cause, at a moment when so much irregularity 
 prevailed in "the country, and they were always 
 obeyed with the utmost promptitude and ex- 
 actness. That which was probably of the 
 greatest advantage to him, was his rigid ad- 
 
170 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 herence to the form of government adopted by 
 Austria. No step was taken by him but in the 
 name of the Emperor, and the people were conse- 
 quently more ready to obey orders that came, or 
 at least appeared to come, from the Imperial 
 Court. He levied taxes to enable him to carry 
 on the war, issued a coinage of twenty kreutzer 
 pieces, divided the landsturm into companies, 
 and, as far as was in his power, carried the an- 
 cient system of government into effect. 
 
 Meanwhile the Vorarlberg, although still in 
 arms for the Tyrolese cause, was of little service 
 to them, on account of the incessant quarrels 
 and discontent of its chiefs. Schneider, who had 
 formerly led them, had been captured and 
 dragged to prison by the enemy, so that the 
 Vorarlbergers now looked to Hofer, not only 
 for advice, but support ; while he on his part, 
 aware of the consequence of their assistance, 
 used his utmost endeavours to appease and tran- 
 quillize them. But the views of Hofer and his 
 associates were at this moment chiefly turned 
 towards Salzburg and Carinthia. They had 
 succeeded in driving their enemies from the 
 Tyrol, and they continued their hostilities against 
 them into the neighbouring countries with the 
 greatest ardour. To the Salzburgers Hofer issued 
 an animated proclamation, which induced num- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 171 
 
 bers to take up arms. Speckbacher in the mean 
 time defeated a strong body of Bavarians on the 
 1 6th and 17th, at Unken and Lofen, the loss of 
 the enemy in killed and prisoners amounting to 
 1,700 men, many of whom perished in the river 
 Saal. 
 
 Peter Thalguter, who shared the command 
 with Speckbacher* on this occasion, saw a Bava- 
 rian officer of rank swimming for his life in the 
 Saal, and precipitating himself into the stream, 
 made him prisoner, while yet in the water. 
 After this victory, Speckbacher advanced as far 
 as Bertholdsgarn and the district of Reichenhall. 
 
 Harrasser a tanner, of Innspruck, took Werfen, 
 which opened a communication between Salz- 
 burg and Villach ; and on the 25th Haspinger 
 drove the enemy from the pass of Lueg, advanced 
 a few days afterwards to Hallein and threatened 
 Salzburg ; his success, however, made him care- 
 less, and his advance was so precipitate as to en- 
 danger his retreat. 
 
 During these operations, Hofer remained 
 quietly at Innspruck, but the success of the 
 Tyrolese arms under his government was a 
 
 * Breunig, Speckbacher's adjutant on this occasion, served 
 afterwards during the war in the Peninsula, in the German 
 Legion, and was raised to the rank of captain for his gallant 
 and distinguished conduct. 
 
172 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 source of great regret to those who had left the 
 country with the Austrians; they had then 
 abandoned the cause as hopeless, and were now 
 lamenting their absence from scenes which re- 
 flected so much glory on their countrymen. 
 Among the rest Eisenstecken and Sieberer, who 
 had both distinguished themselves at the begin- 
 ning of the war, felt acutely their separation 
 from Hofer, and at length determined to return 
 at all hazards and share his fate. Eisenstecken 
 was the bearer of a gold chain and medal sent 
 by the Emperor to Hofer, which he presented to 
 him at Inspruck on the 28th of September, and 
 was appointed by him to the command in the 
 south of the Tyrol. Sieberer afterwards joined 
 the Tyrol ese troops at Kufstein and the Thier- 
 see. Haspinger received also a cross of merit. 
 
 On the 4th of October,, a grand festival was 
 held at Innspruck in honour of Hofer, who was 
 on that day formally invested with the medal, 
 in the great church at the foot of the tomb of 
 Maximilian, by the Abbot of Wiltau, amidst the 
 acclamations of the people. The day was spent 
 in rejoicing and revelry ; but the Tyrolese were 
 not to witness another day of such exultation. 
 
 Their successes unhappily were but a prelude 
 to the tragical events which followed, and they 
 who had been the objects of wonder and admira- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 173 
 
 tion to the whole world for their gallant pa- 
 triotism, were doomed to become again subser- 
 vient to a power against whom they had strug- 
 gled with such bravery and perseverance. 
 
 It was at this period that Miiller and Scho- 
 necher were dispatched as deputies from the 
 Tyrol to England to implore the assistance of 
 the British government. In their present dis- 
 tress, it was perfectly natural that they should 
 have recourse to a nation, in which suffering and 
 sorrow of every kind are sure to find protection 
 and relief — The deputies were received, as 
 might have been expected, by men of all ranks, 
 with the greatest kindness and hospitality. The 
 honours to which their steady patriotism, and 
 their generous loyalty justly entitled them, were 
 liberally bestowed upon them by a people who 
 well knew how to appreciate the value of those 
 rights and privileges for which they were con- 
 tending. Triey were righting for their consti- 
 tution, and that was sufficient to ensure to them 
 the good will and sympathy of Britons ; but to 
 give them more than this — to give them real 
 and effectual assistance was impossible. A pe- 
 cuniary supply, which was all that could have 
 been expected, would have been of little use to 
 them ; and any other aid, the remoteness of their 
 situation and the rapidity with which their re- 
 
174 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 verses succeeded each other, made absolutely 
 impracticable. 
 
 The fresh misfortunes of the Tyrolese began 
 early in the month of October. General Peyri 
 advanced into the south with 6,000 men, and 
 directed his march towards Trent, having pub- 
 lished a proclamation in which he summoned 
 the Tyrolese to lay down their arms or dread the 
 consequences. 
 
 He had received orders from CafFarelli, then 
 minister of war, to make himself master of Trent, 
 cost what it would, and his army directed its 
 march towards that city. Peyri's advanced 
 guard, under the command of Colonels Levier 
 and Gavotti, pushed forward through Pilcante 
 and Ala, and the van, under Percevault, Chef 
 de Bataillon, kept the main road towards Ala. 
 Luxheim met the advanced guard at Ampezzo, 
 with a force of 1,200 men composed of Austrians 
 and Tyrolese, and was repulsed with great loss. 
 Roveredo fell into the hands of the enemy with- 
 out much resistance; and Peyri, having been 
 reinforced by the national guard of the Brenta 
 and the 5th French regiment of the line, ad- 
 vanced to a strong position near Lavis. The 
 Tyrolese here made some show of resistance, 
 and an action took place which was kept up 
 for several hours with great fury on both sides ; 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 175 
 
 but the French, who were superior in numbers, 
 could not be driven from their strong post, and 
 the Tyrolese were obliged to retreat, having 
 lost* 150 men killed and wounded, and about 
 40 prisoners. The French cavalry pursued them 
 as far as Welschmichel, and took a few more 
 men and one four-pounder. 
 
 In the middle of October, however, Eisen- 
 stecken drove the enemy back to Trent, and oc- 
 cupied again the position at Lavis, which he kept 
 for some time. 
 
 The aspect of affairs in the north was at the 
 same time equally disheartening. The Bavarians 
 had advanced through Salzburg, and driven the 
 Tyrolese back over their own frontiers. Speck- 
 bacher, who opposed them in the pass of Strub, 
 was completely defeated with the loss of more 
 than 300 men. Speckbacher was desperately 
 wounded, and his son, a little boy of eleven 
 years old, who had accompanied him to the field, 
 was taken prisoner at his side. The Tyrolese, as 
 soon as they saw that their leader was wounded, 
 retreated in disorder to the heights of Melek, 
 from whence they afterwards fell back to Inn- 
 spruck, fighting as they retreated. Speckbacher 
 was closely pursued by the enemy, and at Wal- 
 
 * The Tyrolese estimate the loss of the French on that day 
 at 400 men. 
 
176 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 drung, where he attempted to make a stand, 
 nearly fell into their hands. 
 
 The misfortunes of the unhappy Tyrolese 
 seemed to encrease daily, the tide of fortune had 
 turned against them, and the overwhelming 
 force of the combined armies of France and 
 Bavaria, drove back and dispersed the hitherto 
 victorious peasantry in every quarter. In the 
 midst of these calamities, peace was finally con- 
 cluded at Znaim between France and Austria, 
 and the Tyrol was ceded to Bavaria for ever ! — 
 Thus did the House of Austria abandon to their 
 fate a people, who, unaided and unsupported, had 
 struggled against a superior force — who had sacri- 
 ficed their lives and their property, to prove their 
 attachment to that House, and their allegiance 
 to its Sovereign. Buonaparte, however, engaged 
 to procure a full and complete pardon for the 
 inhabitants of the Tyrol and Vorarlberg, who 
 had taken a part in the insurrection ; and Eu- 
 gene Beauharnois, now styling himself Eugene 
 Napoleon, issued a proclamation from Villach, 
 confirming to them the assurance of pardon, pro- 
 vided they would instantly lay down their arms 
 and return to their obedience. 
 
 u Tyroleans ! peace is concluded between his 
 majesty the Emperor of the French, King of 
 Italy, Protector of the Confederation of the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 177 
 
 Rhine* my August Father and Sovereign, and 
 His Majesty the Emperor of Austria. 
 
 " Peace therefore prevails every where except 
 among you — you only do not enjoy its benefits. 
 
 " Listening to perfidious suggestions, you 
 have taken up arms against your laws and have 
 subverted them, and now you are gathering the 
 bitter fruits of your rebellion: terror governs 
 your cities; idleness and misery reign among 
 you ; discord is in the midst of you ; and dis- 
 order every where prevails. His Majesty the 
 Emperor and King, touched with your deplora- 
 ble situation, and with the testimonies of re- 
 pentance which several of you have conveyed 
 to his throne, has expressly consented in the 
 treaty of peace to pardon your errors and mis- 
 conduct. 
 
 " I then bring you peace, since I bring you 
 pardon ; but I declare to you that pardon is only 
 granted to you on the condition that you return 
 to your obedience and duty, that you voluntarily 
 lay down your arms, and that you offer no re- 
 sistance to my troops. 
 
 " Charged with the command of the armies 
 which surround you, I come to receive your 
 submission or compel you to submit. 
 
 " The army will be preceded by commissioners 
 appointed by me to hear your complaints, and 
 
 N 
 
173 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 to do justice to the demands you may have to 
 make ; but know that these commissioners can 
 only listen to you when you have laid down 
 your arms. 
 
 " Tyroleans ! If your complaints and demands 
 are well founded, I hereby promise that justice 
 shall be done you. 
 
 " Eugene Napoleon." 
 " Head Quarters at Villach, 
 9,5th of October, 1809." 
 
 In consequence of these proclamations, and 
 the unpropitious appearance of affairs in the 
 Tyrol, several hundreds of peasants threw down 
 their arms and submitted to their fate, and those 
 who still continued to stand out against the 
 enemy had lost their accustomed ardour and 
 activity. — Even Hofer (who had. abandoned 
 Innspruck) for a moment offered to submit and 
 deliver himself up to General Drouet ; but this 
 was a momentary resolution and he continued 
 steadfast and firm in his determination to defend 
 his country to the last extremity. — Amidst the 
 defects of his character, one of the most fatal in 
 the present crisis of the Tyrolese affairs, was his 
 want of decision. — This was the bane of himself 
 and of his country, and to its operation chiefly 
 may be attributed the unfortunate conclusion 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 179 
 
 of his short but interesting career. A strange 
 notion, which had taken possession of his mind, 
 that it was decreed by Providence that the 
 French should be victorious, and that nothing 
 could withstand the arm of Buonaparte, had for 
 awhile convinced him that there was no choice 
 left him but submission — for this reason he 
 offered to give himself up to General Drouet, 
 and issued proclamations to the Tyrolese avow- 
 ing his intention of abandoning a cause which 
 he for the first time considered as lost ; but it 
 appears that notwithstanding this he still clung 
 to a hope of future success, for he had scarcely 
 resolved to submit to the French General, before 
 he spurned the idea as base and cowardly, dis- 
 patched messengers in all directions to rouse the 
 people, and as if by magic appeared again at the 
 head of an army equally devoted to himself and 
 their country. — His letters to Drouet, are the 
 best proofs of his feelings on this occasion. 
 
 To General Drouet. 
 
 " A courier from the Archduke John, furnished 
 with French passports, has just brought to the 
 Tyrol the news officially confirmed, that peace 
 has been finally concluded between the house 
 of Austria and the Emperor of the French. 
 
 " Consoled by seeing the fate of our country 
 n 2 
 
180 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 depend upon the generosity of the French 
 Monarch, we have, in order to stop as soon as 
 possible the unnecessary effusion of blood, sent 
 deputies to the Viceroy of Italy, to express to 
 him our respect, and to come to an understand- 
 ing with him on the measures which circum- 
 stances require. 
 
 " Andrew Hofer, 
 " Commander in Chief of the Tyrol. 1 ' 
 
 " Schonberg, October 29th, 1809/' 
 
 To General Drouet. 
 
 " His Majesty the Viceroy of Italy having 
 deigned to give the deputies of the Pusterthal 
 the assurance, that if all the Tyrolese would lay 
 down their arms they would be treated in the 
 most indulgent manner, that all offences should 
 be pardoned and forgotten, and no person should 
 be persecuted, the undersigned has not hesitated 
 to give to that assurance entire belief, and to 
 order all the troops occupying the different posts 
 to disband and return home. 
 
 " The undersigned most humbly begs your 
 excellency to treat all the Tyrolese with indul- 
 gence and benevolence, and to draw a veil over 
 the past. — In this case the undersigned assures 
 your Excellency, that not the least injury shall 
 be done to any of your soldiers. 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 181 
 
 " However, to avoid all disorder, it may be as 
 well if the entrance of your troops were delayed 
 for a few days, to give the Tyrolese time to 
 return home. 
 
 " In once more recommending the people of 
 the Tyrol to your Excellency's benevolence, the 
 undersigned has the honour to be till death 
 yours, &c. 
 
 " Andrew Hofer." 
 " Steinach, November 4, 1809." 
 
 The Bavarians meanwhile had gained every 
 day a stronger footing in the country, and 
 repulsed the Tyrolese in every attempt they 
 made to oppose their progress. The first divi- 
 sion of the army had advanced from Loser, by 
 the pass of Strub to Waidring and St. Johann, 
 commanded by the Crown Prince. The second 
 under Wrede, by Kessen, and the third under 
 Deroy, by the great road from Kufstein. The 
 advanced guard of the Tyrolese was driven back 
 from Reiterwinkel, and on the 18th of October 
 the whole of the Bavarian force was combined 
 at Worgl ; on the 24th they marched by Kundel 
 to Halle, and after some little resistance from 
 the Tyrolese, made themselves masters of the 
 bridge of Volders. Hofer immediately evacuated 
 Innspruck and drew up his force on the Isel 
 
 n 3 
 
182 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 mountain the scene of his former victory ; but 
 the Bavarians did not appear inclined to attack 
 them, and quietly taking possession of the city 
 without firing a shot, proclaimed the peace 
 which had been just concluded between France 
 and Austria. The Tyrolese dispersed, and Hofer 
 took up his head quarters at Steinach. 
 
 The partial dispersion of the Tyrolese in con- 
 sequence of the pardon offered to them by 
 Eugene Beauharnois, and the accustomed irre- 
 solution of Hofer, put a temporary stop to hos- 
 tilities ; but upon the new and final declaration 
 of their chief, who declared that he would fight 
 till the last moment, the Tyrolese were again 
 in arms, and appeared in force on their favourite 
 position on the Isel mountain. It was not fated, 
 however, that they should again be conquerors 
 on this spot. The Bavarians were much supe- 
 rior to them in strength, and after an engage- 
 ment in which they did not display their usual 
 gallantry, they were completely routed. 
 
 Hofer had for some time past been the friend 
 and companion of a man named Donay, a cun- 
 ning intriguing priest, of moderate talents but 
 quick of apprehension, who perfectly understood 
 the character of Hofer, and by his constant 
 flattery had gained such an ascendancy over 
 him, that he could lead him as he pleased. — His 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 183 
 
 friendship for Hofer had no object but his 
 own purposes and interests. — Disliked for his 
 haughtiness, and despised for his profligacy, he 
 at length became the betrayer of that friend 
 who had confided in him, and for the sake of 
 a paltry reward delivered him who had been 
 his greatest benefactor, into the hands of his 
 enemies and murderers. — This man was dis- 
 patched in company with Sieberer, as deputy 
 from the Tyrol to Beauharnois who was then at 
 Villach, to negociate for the pardon and safety of 
 those chiefs who had either instigated or taken 
 part in the insurrection. — Beauharnois agreed to 
 their request (as has been already seen), and on 
 their return Hofer published the following pro- 
 clamation to the Tyrolese. 
 
 " Tyrolese. — Dear Brothers ! — 
 
 " Peace between His Majesty the Emperor of 
 the French, King of Italy, and the Emperor of 
 Austria, was concluded on the 14th of last 
 month. — We have been informed of this event 
 in a manner which cannot leave us the least 
 reason to doubt. The greatness of soul of Na- 
 poleon assures us of our pardon and of an obli- 
 vion for the past. — In consequence of this I 
 have assembled as great a number as I have been 
 able of the deputies of the different districts, 
 
 n 4 
 
184 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 and with their consent I have sent to Villach 
 M. Donay of Schlanders and Major Seiberer of 
 Unterlangenkamf with a letter addressed to his 
 Imperial Highness the Viceroy, and signed by 
 all the deputies of the districts. The two com- 
 missioners have returned to day and have re- 
 ported the answer of the Viceroy. 
 
 " Brethren ! — we cannot maintain war against 
 the invincible forces of Napoleon. Entirely 
 abandoned by Austria, we are precipitating our- 
 selves into an abyss of misfortune. — I can no 
 longer command you, as I can no longer gua- 
 rantee your security from the disasters to which 
 you would be exposed. — A power of a superior 
 order guides the steps of Napoleon.— It is the 
 immutable decree of Divine Providence which 
 decides victories and the condition of states. — It 
 is no longer permitted to oppose this decree. — It 
 would be madness to strive against the course of 
 a torrent; let us now render ourselves by our 
 resignation to the Divine will worthy of the 
 protection of Heaven ; and by our fraternal love, 
 and the submission which is expected of us, 
 worthy of the generosity and benevolence of 
 Napoleon, &c. &c. 
 
 5 Andrew Hofer." 
 H Sterzing, $th November, 1809-" 
 
 A proclamation which was published on the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 185 
 
 15th, dated Passeyr, shows how much Hofer's 
 feelings were changed in a few clays. 
 
 " I felt inclined to lay down my arms, pre- 
 vailed upon by men whom I considered as 
 friends to my country, but who, as I now find, 
 are its enemies and traitors ; I therefore think it 
 right to inform you, that, all the Passeyr Valley 
 is again in open insurrection. All the inhabit- 
 ants, both old and young, have taken up arms 
 again, and the enemy was yesterday defeated with 
 great loss ; I therefore call on you, brethren, 
 to rejoin us ; were we to surrender to the enemy, 
 we should soon see all the youths of the Tyrol 
 dragged away from their homes, our churches 
 and convents destroyed, divine worship abo- 
 lished, and ourselves overwhelmed w r ith eternal 
 misery. Fight, therefore, in defence of your 
 native country, I shall fight with you and for 
 you, as a father for his children. I feel obliged 
 thus briefly to communicate my sentiments to 
 you, lest I fall a sacrifice for my own people ; you 
 would incur the same fate were you to remain 
 indifferent spectators, and not take up arms 
 again for your God and your native country." 
 
 The proclamations and entreaties of Beau- 
 harnois having no effect, and the peasants still 
 continuing in arms, Rusca and Baraguay d'Hil- 
 liers were dispatched into the Pusterthal on the 
 
186 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 3d of November. On the 4th they occupied 
 Brunecken ; here they were opposed in a gal- 
 lant manner by the Tyrolese, who were however 
 unable to make much opposition, and fell back 
 fio-htino- to Mulbach Clause. Rusca moved 
 
 o o 
 
 forward eagerly in pursuit, and at length, after 
 meeting with the most determined resistance, 
 succeeded in dispersing them, although his own 
 loss was very considerable. Baraguay d'Hil- 
 liers advanced to Brixen. In the mean time the 
 Bavarian troops marched from Innspruck. On the 
 10th of November, the position on the Brenner 
 was occupied, and Major Hoppe was at Sterzing. 
 General Peyri at the same time appeared on the 
 heights of Fleims, and hastened to join his allies, 
 having overcome every resistance that he met 
 with in the mountains. Thus the small force of 
 the Tyrolese which remained in arms was com- 
 pletely surrounded. 
 
 On the 14th, however, Rusca made an attempt 
 to enter the valley of Passeyr, and met with less 
 success than he had formerly done. Torggler 
 and Peter Thalguter met him and drove him 
 back from the old castle of Tirol, pushed for- 
 wards to Terlau and the heights of Jenesien, 
 where the Bavarians were routed ; Rusca him- 
 self was slightly wounded, and his loss amounted 
 to 600 men killed and wounded and 1700 pri- 
 soners. Peter Thalguter was killed in this action 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 187 
 
 in the very act of taking an eagle from the 
 enemy, and fell universally regretted by his 
 countrymen. 
 
 Baraguay d'Hilliers rightly judged that he 
 should be able to effect more by clemency than 
 by force of arms ; and for this reason dispatched 
 a messenger to Passeyr, to invite Hofer and his 
 friend Holznecht to Meran, promising them at 
 the same time every indulgence, and full par- 
 don, provided they would put an end to hostili- 
 ties. Hofer for a long time hesitated what 
 course to pursue. Baraguay d'Hilliers, as well 
 as Beauharnois, was urgent in his entreaties, and 
 would have done any thing in : his power to have 
 secured to him a safe retreat, but he refused to 
 bend to the storm that hung over his head till it 
 was too late to recede. Deceived by false intelli- 
 gence, and traitorous companions, he had still 
 clung to the vain hope of seeing better days, 
 until he was surrounded and overwhelmed by 
 those enemies whom he had so long and so gal- 
 lantly opposed. 
 
 In this dilemma most of the chiefs took ad- 
 vantage of the proffered protection of Beau- 
 harnois, and joined a large party of Tyrolese 
 emigrants at Warasdin. But Hofer persisted in 
 his refusal to accompany them, and when they 
 had all deserted him, suddenly disappeared, 
 retiring to a place of concealment in the moun- 
 
188 HISTORY OF HOFEK. 
 
 tains of his native valley, where he remained for 
 some time undiscovered in spite of the active 
 search that was made after him, and the reward 
 that was offered for his head. Haspinger es- 
 caped through the Munsterthal to the Grisons ; 
 and Speckbacher, who, deceived by Hofer's 
 orders and proclamations, remained under arms 
 for some time, and made several attempts to 
 oppose the enemy, was driven back from every 
 position, and by degrees deserted by all his com- 
 panions. General Deroy offered a large reward 
 for the apprehension of his person; but after 
 encountering innumerable difficulties, and meet- 
 ing with the most extraordinary adventures, he 
 succeeded in escaping to Austria. Kolb also, 
 after remaining in arms so long as he was able to 
 collect any force, followed the steps of Speck- 
 bacher, accompanied by twelve companions, and 
 arrived in safety at Vienna. 
 
 At the beginning of December there were 
 but few peasants in arms ; here and there indeed 
 some few straggling parties of desperate men, 
 who had nothing to lose, and who hoped to 
 profit by partial plunder, were still to be seen ; 
 but these too had lost their leaders, and resem- 
 bled rather gangs of banditti than the remains 
 of the once victorious army of the Tyrolese 
 patriots. Baraguay d'Hilliers, however, who had 
 laboured hard to restore tranquillity to the 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 189 
 
 country, was vexed at the continuance of the 
 partial appearance of insurrection, and on the 
 9th of December published a proclamation, 
 which ought not to be omitted. 
 
 " Tyroleans ! 
 
 " As I advanced with the French army into 
 your country I found you in arms ; I believed 
 that you had been seduced from your duty, but 
 that you were not then guilty, and I felt con- 
 vinced that you would lay down those arms as 
 soon as you were informed of the contents of 
 the treaty of peace, which promised you pardon 
 on that condition. 
 
 " Touched by the generosity of my sovereign, 
 the Emperor, I have acted towards you with the 
 greatest clemency. I did not punish those who 
 opposed me at Mulbach and Meran. Those 
 same French whom you are so eager to destroy, 
 have respected your villages, your women, and 
 your property. The Pusterthal, the Vintschgaw, 
 and the Passeyrthal, which were the scenes of 
 your most obstinate fury, teem with examples of 
 the moderation of the French. But while I 
 relied upon the oaths of those amongst you who 
 were inclined to take advantage of my peaceful 
 offers, some traitors who depended only on the 
 war, who had nothing to sacrifice and nothing 
 to lose, persuaded the inhabitants of the district 
 
190 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 of Brixen, to take up arms again, although their 
 pardon was only on condition of their tranquil- 
 lity. These were attacked, conquered and dis- 
 persed, and their houses, which were soiled by 
 crime, burnt to the ground. Tyroleans ! let this 
 dreadful example be a warning to you. There 
 will yet be many who will seek to seduce you, 
 but spare me the pain of being obliged to punish 
 you. And you freeholders, magistrates, and 
 ministers of God, combine yourselves against 
 these bands of disturbers ; I desire nothing of 
 you but that you will remain quietly at home ; 
 your property, your persons, your religion, laws, 
 customs and prejudices shall all be respected ; 
 but those who have broken their words shall be 
 deservedly punished. For the sake of your- 
 selves remain faithful to your words, and trust 
 in God and the Emperor Napoleon. 
 
 " Baraguay D'Hilliers." 
 " Botzen, December 9, 1809." 
 
 On the 22d of December several of the Ty- 
 rolese chiefs were shot, for having borne arms 
 after the publication of this proclamation. 
 
 The sudden disappearance of Hofer in the 
 mean time had given rise to innumerable con- 
 tradictory rumours and conjectures. Many be- 
 lieved that he had followed the example of 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 191 
 
 Speckbacher and his companions, and escaped 
 over the mountains into Austria, and they ex- 
 pected to hear intelligence of him soon from 
 that quarter; others were persuaded that he had 
 actually been seen at Vienna; and some few 
 rightly conjectured that he was concealed in the 
 Tyrol. The place of his concealment, in which 
 he remained from the end of November to the 
 end of the month of January following, was a 
 solitary Alpine hut, four long leagues distant 
 from his own home, at times inaccessible from 
 the snow which surrounded it ; a few faithful 
 adherents supplied him from time to time with 
 the food that was necessary for himself and his 
 family, and more than once he was visited by 
 confidential messengers from the Emperor of 
 Austria, who used every entreaty to make him 
 quit his abode and follow them to Austria, as- 
 suring him at the same time a safe conduct 
 through the enemy's army. But Hofer steadily 
 refused all their offers, and expressed his deter- 
 mination never to abandon either his country or 
 his family. He adhered tenaciously to all his 
 old attachments and habits, and even resisted 
 the urgent entreaties of his friends, who endea- 
 voured to persuade him to cut off his beard, from 
 an apprehension that it would lead to a dis- 
 covery of his person. At length, the traitor 
 
1£2 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 Donay, once his intimate friend, allured by the 
 flattering promises of the French, basely per- 
 suaded a man who had been entrusted with the 
 secret, to betray him to Baraguay d'Hilliers, and 
 Captain Renouard, of the 44th Regiment, was 
 appointed to the command of 1600 men to take 
 him prisoner. Besides this force, which appears 
 enormous when we consider that it was intended 
 merely for the capture of one unfortunate man, 
 who, situated as he was, could not hope to de- 
 fend himself, 2000 more were ordered to be in 
 readiness to assist them, so fearful were they of 
 some attempt being made to rescue him. 
 
 The column began their march at midnight 
 over ice and snow, and at 5 o'clock in the morn- 
 ing of the 20th of January Hofer and his family 
 were made prisoners. It was dark when the 
 French approached the hut, but as soon as he 
 heard the officer enquire for him he came intre- 
 pidly forward and submitted to be bound. 
 
 He was then marched, together with his wife, 
 his daughter, and his son, who was 12 years 
 old, through Meran to Botzen, amidst the shouts 
 of the French soldiery, and the tears of his 
 countrymen. At Botzen he met with kinder 
 treatment ; Baraguay d'Hilliers gave orders that 
 he should be removed to a more commodious 
 prison, and that less rigour should be used 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER, " ]Q3 
 
 against him. The French officers also did all in 
 their power to alleviate the pain of his confine- 
 ment by such attentions as it was in their power 
 to bestow, in return for the kindness with which 
 he had always treated his prisoners. While at 
 Botzen he requested forgiveness of several per- 
 sons whom he feared he had offended, but was 
 answered only by their tears ; and having parted 
 with his family, whom he was fated never to see 
 again, he was hurried off under a strong escort 
 to Mantua. 
 
 From his long confinement, in his miserable 
 retreat, and his coarse food, his appearance was 
 much altered, and his hair had become more grey ; 
 but his spirit was as untamed as ever, and his 
 countenance in the midst of the gloom which 
 surrounded him, preserved to the last the same 
 expression of cheerfulness and serenity. He 
 did not however expect the sentence which was 
 passed upon him, but continued to hope that his 
 innocence, and the justice of his cause would 
 protect him. 
 
 On his arrival at Mantua a court-martial was 
 immediately holden for the purpose of trying 
 him, of which General Bisson, then Governor, 
 was appointed President; on comparing the 
 votes a great difference of opinion was found to 
 prevail as to the nature of his sentence; the 
 
 o 
 
194 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 majority were for confinement; two had the 
 courage to vote for his entire deliverance; but a 
 telegraph from Milan decided the question, by 
 decreeing death within twent}^-four hours, thus 
 putting it out of the power of Austria to render 
 him any assistance. 
 
 Berthier, who was then at Vienna, excited uni- 
 versal indignation by the hypocritical manner in 
 which he afTectedto pity him; he ventured even 
 to affirm that it would cause great pain to Na- 
 poleon, who would never have permitted such a 
 proceeding had he been aware of it. Hofer 
 received his sentence of death with the same 
 unshaken firmness that had marked his character 
 throughout, and requested that a priest might be 
 allowed to attend him, which was immediately 
 complied with. To this priest (Manifesti) who 
 never quitted him till the moment of his death, 
 he delivered his last adieu to his family, con- 
 versed with him of the Tyrolese war, with great 
 eagerness, and constantly expressed his con- 
 fidence that the Tyrol would sooner or later 
 return to the government of Austria. 
 
 The fatal morning of his execution now ar- 
 rived. As the the clock struck 1 1 the generale 
 sounded, a battalion of grenadiers was drawn 
 out, and the officers who were to attend the exe- 
 cution entered his prison. As he came from 
 
 «D«*107 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 1£5 
 
 thence he passed by the barracks ori the Porta 
 Molina, in which the Tyrolese were confined ; 
 all who were there fell on their knees, put up 
 their prayers and wept aloud. Those who were 
 at large in the citadel assembled on the road by 
 which he passed, and approaching as near as the 
 escort permitted them, threw themselves on the 
 ground and implored his blessing. This Hofer 
 gave them, and then begged their forgiveness 
 for having been the cause of their present mis- 
 fortunes, assuring them at the same time that he 
 felt confident they would once again return un- 
 der the dominion of the Emperor Francis, to 
 whom he cried out the last " vivat" with a clear 
 and steady voice. He delivered to Manifest!, 
 the priest, every thing he possessed, to be dis- 
 tributed amongst his countrymen ; this consisted 
 of 500 florins in Austrian bank notes, his silver 
 snuff-box, and his beautiful rosary ; a few mo- 
 ments before his death he also delivered to this 
 faithful attendant his small silver rosary, which 
 he constantly carried about him. 
 
 On the broad bastion, at a little distance from 
 the Porta Ceresa, the commanding officer halted 
 his men. The grenadiers formed a square open 
 in the rear ; twelve men and a corporal stepped 
 forward, while Hofer remained standing in the 
 centre. The drummer then offered him a white 
 
 o £ 
 
19^ HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 handkerchief to bind his eyes, and told him that 
 it was necessary to kneel down, but Hofer de- 
 clined the handkerchief, and peremptorily re- 
 fused to kneel, observing, " that he was used 
 to stand upright before his Creator, and in that 
 posture he would deliver up his spirit to him." 
 He cautioned the corporal to perform his duty 
 well, at the same time presenting him with a 
 piece of twenty kreutzers, and having uttered a 
 few words by way of farewell, expressive of his 
 unshaken attachment to his native country, he 
 pronounced the word " Fire" with a firm voice. 
 His death, like that of Palm, was not instan- 
 taneous, for on the first fire he sunk only on his 
 knees; a merciful shot, however, at last dis- 
 patched him. The spot on which he fell is still 
 considered sacred by his countrymen and com- 
 panions in arms. 
 
 His body, instead of being allowed to remain 
 for some time on the place of execution, as was 
 usual on such occasions, was borne by the grena- 
 diers on a black bier to the church of St. Mi- 
 chael, where it lay in state, and a guard of 
 honour appointed to watch it, that the people 
 might see that the much dreaded Barbone (or 
 General Sanvird as the French used to call him) 
 was really no more. The funeral then took place, 
 and by the solemnity with which it was con- 
 
HISTORY OF HOFER. 197 
 
 ducted, it appeared as if the French were anxious 
 to compensate for the injury they had done him 
 when alive, by the honours they paid to him now 
 dead. His family were permitted to depart for 
 Austria, and the Emperor immediately gave them 
 a pension of 2000 florins, and a sum of money 
 to enable them to settle ; but his widow could 
 not prevail upon herself to abandon her native 
 country, and in spite of the offers made to her 
 by the Court of Austria, preferred returning to 
 her old habitation in the valley of Passeyr. His 
 son was also handsomely provided for. 
 
 Thus perished Hofer in the prime of life. 
 Amidst the numerous crimes that stain the name 
 of Napoleon, there is not one of a deeper dye 
 than the murder of Hofer. With all his faults, 
 all his irresolution, and contradictory conduct, 
 when we reflect that Hofer was a simple, un- 
 educated village innkeeper, who opposed for 
 some time with success the enormous power of 
 France and Bavaria, with an army of undisci- 
 plined peasants, we cannot contemplate his con- 
 duct without astonishment and admiration. It 
 is true that his name will not occupy a conspicu- 
 ous place in the page of general history ; but 
 in his own country, by those who knew and 
 could estimate his merits, as well as by those 
 who had experienced his power or his kindness, 
 it will never be forgotten. 
 
198 HISTORY OF HOFER. 
 
 By his companions and countrymen, he was 
 regarded as the hero, the saviour of his country. 
 His faults were forgotten in his victories ; and 
 his name is never mentioned in the Tyrol at this 
 day without tears of grateful affection and ad- 
 miration. 
 
 A simple tomb has been erected to his memory 
 on the Brenner, at a short distance from his own 
 habitation ; it contains no other inscription than 
 his name, and the dates of his birth and death. 
 The record of his actions is left to be transmitted, 
 as it doubtless will be, to the latest posterity, in 
 the popular stories and rude ballads of the 
 mountaineers, who love and revere his name as a 
 model of disinterested loyalty and devoted at- 
 tachment to his native land. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 London : Printed by C. Roworth, 
 Bell-yard, Temple-bar. 
 
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